Reentry Courts

Special courts based on the drug court model that help reduce recidivism and improve public safety through the use of judicial oversight. Instead of the traditional responsibility of the court to an offender which ends when a defendant is sentenced by a judge, judges in reentry courts are actively involved in overseeing the transition of offenders. Responsibilities generally assigned to reentry courts include reviewing offenders' reentry progress and problems; ordering offenders to participate in various treatment and reintegration programs; using drug and alcohol testing and other checks to monitor compliance; applying graduated sanctions to offenders who do not comply with treatment requirements; and providing modest incentive rewards for sustained clean drug tests and other positive behaviors. Models include case-defined reentry courts where a sentencing judge can retain jurisdiction over a case during the entire life of the sentence; and reentry courts that are established as stand-alone courts where the court maintains an exclusive docket of reentry cases. In either model, it is expected that the judge will actively engage correctional administrators overseeing the period of imprisonment preceding release.