MAHONING COUNTY State finds CCA facilities are among best in reducing recidivism

Two CCA facilities were in the top five for the state.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Local facilities run by Community Corrections Association of Youngstown are among the best in Ohio when it comes to reducing recidivism by offenders.
That's according to a recent study by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, which looks at recidivism rates for halfway houses and community- based corrections facilities all over the state.
It specifically looked at rates for all offenders released from those facilities from 1996 to 1999, said Dr. Richard J. Billak, CCA's chief executive officer.
He said other studies have shown that recidivism, or a lapsing back into crime, most often occurs within three years of an offender's being released.
The study showed that of 33 facilities surveyed, CCA's community-based corrections facility had the second-best recidivism rate in the state, and its halfway house had the fourth best rate.
"This is a significant honor," Billak said. "These results speak volumes about our staffs and programs."
Difference in facilities
Billak said a halfway house is a transitional facility for offenders who are coming out of prison, where they spend time before being fully released.
A CBCF is an actual incarceration facility that judges sometimes use as an alternative to prison.
Billak said the CCA community-based correction facility showed a 32 percent reduction in recidivism from the start to the end of the three-year survey period, and its halfway house showed a 27 percent reduction.
Both figures are well above the state average of 9 percent improvement during that time period.
Billak attributed CCA's success to its use of programs such as cognitive skills, which is aimed at "changing the way people think."
CCA also uses employment and education programs as well as drug and alcohol addiction counseling to help cut its recidivism rates.
Dr. Edward Latessa of the University of Cincinnati, who oversaw the research project, said in a written statement that "the CCA program has demonstrated that treatment can be an effective correctional alternative."
bjackson@vindy.com