Parental Criminal Justice Involvement and Children's Involvement With Child Protective Services: Do Adult Drug Treatment Courts Prevent Child Maltreatment?

Gifford, Elizabeth J

Eldred, Lindsey M

Sloan, Frank A

Evans, Kelly E

England

2016-09-28T22:11:34Z

2016

BACKGROUND: In light of evidence showing reduced criminal recidivism and cost savings, adult drug treatment courts have grown in popularity. However, the potential spillover benefits to family members are understudied. OBJECTIVES: To examine: (1) the overlap between parents who were convicted of a substance-related offense and their children's involvement with child protective services (CPS); and (2) whether parental participation in an adult drug treatment court program reduces children's risk for CPS involvement. METHODS: Administrative data from North Carolina courts, birth records, and social services were linked at the child level. First, children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were matched to (a) children of parents convicted of a nonsubstance-related offense and (b) those not convicted of any offense. Second, we compared children of parents who completed a DTC program with children of parents who were referred but did not enroll, who enrolled for <90 days but did not complete, and who enrolled for 90+ days but did not complete. Multivariate logistic regression was used to model group differences in the odds of being reported to CPS in the 1 to 3 years following parental criminal conviction or, alternatively, being referred to a DTC program. RESULTS: Children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were at greater risk of CPS involvement than children whose parents were not convicted of any charge, but DTC participation did not mitigate this risk. Conclusion/Importance: The role of specialty courts as a strategy for reducing children's risk of maltreatment should be further explored.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26789656

1532-2491

https://hdl.handle.net/10161/12796

eng

Informa UK Limited

Subst Use Misuse

10.3109/10826084.2015.1089906

Drug treatment courts

child maltreatment

convictions

substance use

Adolescent

Child

Child Abuse

Child Protective Services

Child of Impaired Parents

Child, Preschool

Crime

Criminal Law

Female

Humans

Infant

Logistic Models

Male

Multivariate Analysis

Parents

Street Drugs

Substance-Related Disorders

Parental Criminal Justice Involvement and Children's Involvement With Child Protective Services: Do Adult Drug Treatment Courts Prevent Child Maltreatment?

Journal article

Gifford, Elizabeth J|0000-0002-1488-0286

Eldred, Lindsey M|0000-0002-5785-0423

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26789656

179

192

2

Center for Child and Family Policy

Center for Population Health & Aging

Duke

Duke Population Research Center

Duke Population Research Institute

Economics

Global Health Institute

Institute of Public Policy

Institutes and Provost's Academic Units

Public Policy Studies

Sanford School of Public Policy

School of Nursing

School of Nursing - Secondary Group

Staff

Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

University Institutes and Centers

Published

51