Swift and certain probation: Assessing fidelity to the HOPE model

Abstract

While outcomes for HOPE and HOPE-like probation programs have received a good deal of attention in the literature, there is arguably less focus on implementation of those programs with fidelity to the HOPE model. This study describes one such program, the Swift and Certain Probation program in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, and the degree to which it was implemented with fidelity using the list of elements laid out in the Demonstration Field Experiment (DFE) Final Report. We observed the Swift and Certain Probation program for two years and found that it is implemented with fidelity across many, but not all, of the elements of HOPE. We conclude with lingering issues for both the implementation and evaluation of HOPE and, especially, HOPE-like programs.

Therapeutic Jurisprudence in Swift and Certain Probation

“…Programs in which TJ is successfully manifested, such as drug courts and mental health courts, and certainly this SAC program, typically have a judge that embodies TJ, but it is unclear what would happen to that embodiment or to those programs if the judge were to leave the bench (on this point, see Perlin, 2013). In the SAC program, TJ is also clearly manifested in participants' interactions and relationships with their probation officers, which is likely important to the early success of the program as described by Frailing et al, (2018Frailing et al, ( , 2020 and indicates that TJ is now an integral part of SAC.…”

“…A process evaluation has revealed progress toward a number of these goals, including reducing alcoholism and drug dependency for participants, reducing the number of new crimes by participants, increasing the personal, familial, and societal accountability among participants, promoting the effective interaction of resources among criminal justice personnel and community agencies, and reducing the overcrowding of prisons (Frailing et al, 2018(Frailing et al, , 2020.…”