NMATES working in the prison’s 4,300hectares of forest gained 283 forestry-related New Zealand Qualifications

Authority (NZQA) unit standards during2003/04.

The National Certificate in Forestry ismade up of a number of modules includingtree thinning and pruning, chainsawmaintenance and operation, forestry industryknowledge and first aid.

Inside:

PPS, Justice sector thanked page 3 Professional ethics shine at Mt Eden Prison page 4

Planning a sentence page 10 Bikers riding high on community work page 11

correctionsnewsSeptember 2004

Magazine of the Department of CorrectionsMagazine of the Department of Corrections

I

Forestry students going from strength to strengthFive inmates who recently earned their National Certificates in Forestry are just the tip of the icebergwhen it comes to forestry training at Tongariro/Rangipo Prison.

According to Corrections InmateEmployment (CIE) Instructor Fred Corfield,who trains the inmates, every job in theindustry has ‘NZQA standards required’ inthe advertisement. Fred says the NZQA

unit standards he teaches are considered theminimum standard for working in theindustry, so the training really helps inmateswhen they are released from prison.

“The inmates work at their own pace –some might take a year to complete theCertificate, others just a few monthsdepending on their level of skill,” he says.

continued on page 9

2 CORRECTIONS NEWS

Where we are at:end of 2003/04 year report

CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S CommentCHIEF EXECUTIVE’S Comment

I want to pass on my congratulations andappreciation to Corrections staff for another yearof commendable achievement. It has also been ayear that leaves us better placed for the future. Asthe benefits of the Output Pricing Review fundingcome through they will better enable us to maintainand enhance our capability. Firstly, and mostimportantly, there will be more money to invest intraining and development of our most importantresource – people. Secondly, we should be in aposition where the Assets and Property team ismuch better placed to get on top of assetmaintenance issues and take a more effective andlong-term approach to this question. And our ITteam will be better placed to maintain theIntegrated Offender Management System (IOMS)with decisions made before too long on futuredirection for developing the system.

The services have coped pretty well with biggervolumes of offenders than were expected when theStatement of Intent was printed and servicing andsupport for the Parole Board has now reached asteady situation. Corrections Inmate Employmenthas reached a position at the end of the year thatshould leave it poised for the prospect of somefurther expansion. And I am confident that theestablishment of Intervention Services should leadto more effective programme delivery. Theadditional money the Minister has secured for re-integration initiatives will also strengthen ourefforts in reducing re-offending.

The Corrections Act has been passed and we havealso been involved in supporting other legislationand providing good quality advice on policy andlegislative issues.

The Regional Prisons Development Project has comethrough a variety of challenging situations, yetremains in good shape to deliver on time and withinbudget.

There have been a whole host of otherachievements, whether they be improvements inmeeting quality standards or exceeding targets set.

On the other side of the ledger there are areaswhere we didn’t do as well as we would have liked,despite the effort put in. Some of thoseshortcomings were more significant than others.We must look to learn from such lapses so that wecan do much better next year.

Overall, we continue to compare reasonably wellwith our contemporaries overseas. Some things wedo better, and we generally compare very well onefficiency factors. Our stakeholders and the NewZealand public can be assured they are gettinggood value for their taxpayer dollar.

Once again a big thank you for a year, which whilenot perfect, and I don’t know of any comparableCorrections environment that is characterised byunallayed praise, was a very creditable one and onewhich overall you can feel mighty proud about.Moreover, as I said at the outset, a number of thisyear’s achievements will have benefits in futureyears.

Mark ByersChief Executive

CORRECTIONS NEWS 3

THE ongoing efforts of Department staff inresponse to prison population pressures havenot gone unnoticed.

Public Prisons Service (PPS) GeneralManager Phil McCarthy says theunexpectedly high prison population hasproved a challenge for the Department, andother justice sector agencies New ZealandPolice, Ministry of Justice and the NewZealand Parole Board.

“The Department is working with theseagencies to ensure the situation is managedeffectively,” says Phil.

“But I must commend staff who have allrisen to the occasion, and managed theincreased numbers in a very professionalmanner,” he says.

“A number of options are currently beinginvestigated to alleviate pressure on prisonnumbers.”

These include extending bed numbers atAuckland, Waikeria, Auckland CentralRemand and Mt Eden prisons; and doublebunking at Hawke’s Bay, Rimutaka,Christchurch Women’s and Invercargillprisons.

“An additional 40 beds will be availablewhen the refurbishment of Wanganui Prisonis complete.

“Because the prison system is structurednationally, every development will help easepressure throughout the country.”

In the meantime, police cells willcontinue to be used to accommodate inmates,under the two parties’ Memorandum ofUnderstanding.

National Property Manager WilliamWhewell says that planning for four newprisons started in 1998.

The new prisons will significantly

increase the range and capacity of the prisonsystem, with the Northland RegionCorrections Facility and Spring HillCorrections Facility to include around 15 and80 youth beds respectively.

The Auckland Region Women’sCorrections Facility is expected to open bymid-2006. The much smaller women’s prisonpopulation makes it vulnerable tofluctuations. This, and growing numbers ofwomen inmates, has further confirmed theneed for the women-only prison planned forManukau City.

As a mid-term solution, 23 new bedswere added to Waikeria Prison’s women-onlyNikau Unit in June, making a total of 83 onthat site, and 381 beds nationally.

PPS, justice sector thanked

LAST month Auckland Police and theCommunity Probation Service (CPS), signeda service level agreement on the managementof high-risk offenders.

The agreement will increase cooperationbetween the agencies, enhance communitysafety and reduce re-offending through agreater sharing of information on offendersidentified with a high probability ofre-offending.

Police and Corrections sign high-riskoffenders agreement in Auckland

Chief Executive MarkByers with inspector MikeHill (far left), InspectorRob Abbott, Inspector LesPaterson, and CPSWaitemata AreaManager LesleyCampbell.

Terms of the agreement include CPSadvising Police of pending high-risk offenderreleases and of any breaches committed byhigh-risk offenders. In turn, Police willadvise where legislation can be better utilisedto apply for conditions or orders. Police willalso provide support to ensure the safety ofCPS staff who face possible violence orintimidation from a high-risk offender.

The agreement covers the Auckland areasof Manukau and Waitemata and is

underpinned by the 2001 Memorandum ofUnderstanding that operates nationallybetween the two agencies.

4 CORRECTIONS NEWS

A core group of Mt Eden Prison staff hasbeen established to identify and implementways to improve professional culture at theprison and public perception of prison staff.

The initiative represents the current stageof the national Professional Ethics project,started in 2001 and now operating in everyNew Zealand prison.

Mt Eden staff are currently targeting waysto improve their contact with the generalpublic.

“Staff recognise that they are not alwaysseen in a positive way by the public. Thegroup is addressing this by identifying areaswhere staff can be encouraged to raise theirlevel of professionalism,” says organiser ofthe group, Unit Manager Raewyn Abbott.

One of the ways we’re doing this includesa campaign to improve the uniform standard,in line with national standards.

“We’re ensuring that staff who have directpublic contact always wear a tie, with a tiepin,to raise their image publicly. New shoe-cleaning equipment available for staff to usehas been one of the more popular initiativesof the professional ethics group.”

Site Manager Brigid Bradley says thenew focus on making positive changes to theprofessional culture has been a boost to staffmorale, which is great to see.

“Staff realise that their attitude is crucialwhen dealing with the public, and there hasbeen a combined effort by staff to ensure thepublic are noticing an improved image.”

The group recently organised a barbequeto thank staff for their continued support, andthere are plans underway for furtherinitiatives as part of the national project.

A year-long study into New Zealand’shighest-risk offenders has recently beencompleted. The report, New Zealand’s high-risk offenders: Who are they and what arethe issues in their management andtreatment?, involved 149 inmates fromWaikeria Prison and seeks insight intooffenders predicted to seriously re-offend.

“Besides their criminal history and broaddemographic details, very little informationexists on what is a diverse, and high-risk,group of people,” says Nick Wilson, SeniorAdviser Psychological Services and authorof the report.

“The results of the study will be used todevelop more effect ive treatmentprogrammes for high-risk offenders whosebehaviour is well-learnt and hard to manage.”

Nick says the 149 participants wereinterviewed and tested using variousmeasures, which looked at treatment history,mental health, personality, developmentalhistory, criminogenic (crime-causing) needsand cultural knowledge.

Participants had RoC*RoI (a Departmentrisk-assessment tool) scores starting at .70,or a 70 percent risk of serious re-offending.Those offenders with scores of .80 and abovewere categorised as highest-risk. Forty eightpercent of participants fell into the highest-risk category.

“All participants had a chronic history ofescalating serious offending that, for themajority, began before 13 years of age.Drugs, alcohol and unstable home,employment and personal relationships also

featured highly among participants,” saysNick.

Unexpected and concerning was thatnearly a third of the group were distinguishedby the presence of severe personalitydisorders including Paranoid PersonalityDisorder, Borderline Personality Disorder,and Schizotypal Personality Disorder. Elevenpercent indicated a combination of thesepersonality disorders.

“People with disorders are resistant tothe control of others, ready to bear grudgesand tend to be unforgiving, suspicious,hypersensitive, easily slighted, and alwayslooking for information that might supportand validate their hostile belief system,” saysNick.

Report on high-risk offenders released

Corrections Officer Gerry Guywatches as colleague DennySolomona shines his shoes,

using new shoe-cleaningequipment provided to staff.

INNOVATIVE desktop resources designedto help staff improve their language skillswere launched during Maori Language Week.

The three language tools were designedby Bob Hill, Senior Human ResourcesAdviser (Responsiveness), to provide staffwith a quick, easy reference for everyday useof the Maori language (Te Reo).

“The idea was to develop something thatwould support and encourage staff to use TeReo in the workplace,” says Bob.

There are three tools available to staff; adesktop cube, a desktop folding card and apocket leaflet.

Each tool has a range of common Maoriwords and phrases, along with Englishtranslations.

The tools are a part of the Department’sMaori Language Strategy, which is beingdeveloped to support the Maori Strategic Plan.

“The Maori Strategic Plan calls for

greater responsiveness toMaori and emphasises thevalue of Te Reo skills inincreasing responsiveness,”says Bob.

“We asked a number ofs ta ff abou t how theDepartment can support andencourage Te Reo in the workplace.We also consulted with othergovernment departments about howthey were developing and supportingTe Reo in the workplace.”

More information for staff onthe Maori language, and using itin the workplace, is available onthe Department’s intranet underthe ‘Staff Updates’ tab. Theresources were r ecen t lydistributed to each site.

Maori languagetools launched

Mike Martelli, General Manager Strategic Services (left), and Bob Hill,Senior Human Resources Adviser (Responsiveness), take a look at thenew Te Reo resources.

CORRECTIONS NEWS 5

6 CORRECTIONS NEWS

The two designs used for thenew greeting cards are a ‘hawk’

and ‘flowers’ artwork by an inmate inthe Auckland Prison art programme.

Thanks...

It’s easierto say

Artwork from an inmate at Auckland Prison has beenused to create new Corrections greeting cards. Eachpack of ten cards features two designs – a hawk andbrightly coloured flowers.

THE inmate artist is a member of AucklandPrison’s well-recognised art class.

Jacqui Connor, Programme Coordinatorat Auckland Prison, says projects like thegreeting cards are a great opportunity topromote the talents of inmates who haveworked hard to develop their artwork skills.

The objective of art programmes is tosupport inmates to develop their artistic talentand to make positive life choices. TheAuckland Prison art class meets once a weekand has an ‘art komiti’, an inmate committeethat helps the tutor to operate the class. Beinginvolved with the komiti provides anopportunity for inmates to improvethe i r l e ade r sh ip andmanagement skills.

Inmates in the Auckland Prison artprogramme have also produced artwork fora range of projects. These include muralsdonated to Auckland Hospital in2003, artexhibitionssponsored byC r e a t i v eNew Zealand, andthe Department’sChr is tmas cards .

The greetingcards can beordered by staffvia theD e p a r t m e n tintranet.

CORRECTIONS NEWS 7

NZPARS hasrecently created a

brochure aimed athelping young childrencope when their parent

goes to prison.

Helping familieshelp inmates

INMATES’ families can be the forgotten victims of crime.

Family/whanau have an important role to play in the reintegrativeprocess, helping offenders make a successful transition back to thecommunity.

Corrections works with community-based organisations tohelp minimise the impact of imprisonment on offenders’relatives. Chris Thornborough, Manager CorporateServices, says Corrections’ relationship with thoseorganisations helps ensure offenders have a betterchance of successfully returning to community life.

“The work these organisations do is veryimportant as their practical support helpsinmates live offence-free in the community.”

One such group, New Zealand Prisoners’Aid and Rehabilitation Society(NZPARS), has been working withoffenders and their families forover 125 years.

NZPARS assists offenders andtheir family/whanau to tackleany practical problems whenthey rejoin the community.The organisation helps ex-

inmates find jobs,provides advice on

finances andrelationship issues, andhelps offendersdevelop links withsupport networksand otheragencies tohelp themstay crime-free.

INNOVATIVE landscaping for the entranceto the new Northland Region CorrectionsFacility (NRCF), near Kaikohe, is underway.

Mike Hughes, NRCF Site Manager, saysthat the landscaping design is one of the manyconcrete examples of the partnership betweenNgati Rangi and Corrections.

The landscaping design is based on thekoru, which represents new life and capturesthe spiritual elements of the site, says NgatiRangi representative Percy Tipene.

He says the design begins with lowergrowing plants and has a kauri tree,symbolising leadership, at the top. Makingup the centre part of the koru are variousmedicinal and healing plants such as korimikoand kawakawa and vegetation of differentcolours, shapes and textures. Percy says thatNgati Rangi chose the plant species to reflectcultural and traditional uses.

On the right-hand side of the entry is themale koru, with its tail pointing in toward thefacility: here the design is characterised bylarge, angular rocks and scattered plantings.

“This symbolises the fragmentation ofsociety and the views of those entering thefacility,” says Percy.

On the left-hand side of the entrance isthe female koru, which has its tail pointingaway from the facility, symbolising themother guiding her son to safety. Here theplanting is more enclosing and includes manygroups of plants, which represent the shelterand nurturing of whanau groups, Percyexplains.

The plants on the male side of the designretain seeds, while vegetation on the femaleside typically produce berries or have theability to attract birds, continuing the designtheme of ‘new life’.

Planting will form a corridor from theroadside to the facility entry, and thelandscape themes used at the entrance willbe used throughout the facility.

Mike says Ngati Rangi are involved invarious other activities at the site, includingrecruitment of staff to work at the facility,naming of buildings, training andprogrammes development and procedures.

Healing journey

Future Leaders graduate

The third intake of recentlygraduated Future Leaders.

THE third intake of Future Leaders graduated

recently after completing a 26-month course

designed to develop staff with the potential

to become leaders at Corrections.

Natasha Barnett, Management Accountant

and one of the graduates, says she found the

programme challenging and worthwhile.

“It was an invaluable opportunity, not

only to acquire managerial tools and

techniques, but to build relationships and

learn about operations outside head office,”

says Natasha.

The 12 graduates completed five

intensive workshops that covered diverse

subjects ranging from critical thinking and

understanding the public sector, to leading

others through change.

Participants also produced individually

focused personal development plans,

identifying their strengths and weaknesses

and how to work on them.

The final course requirement was a

presentation to the Chief Executive and

General Managers at the day-long graduation.

The purpose of the presentation was to

combine the theory skills with practical skills

of presentation, communication and time

management.

The Chief Executive addressed the

graduates and spoke about his own progress

through management and the importance of

learning from the organisation’s successful

managers.

Presentations on the day included CPS

Service Manager Melissa Brussovs on Inter-

Service Staff Integration and Cooperation

and Natasha Barnett on Service Manager

Desk File and Role-Specific Duties.

The fourth intake of Future Leaders are

halfway through their course, and the next

group is currently being selected.

The koru-inspired planting at the roadsideentrance to Northland Region Corrections Facility.

8 CORRECTIONS NEWS

Inmates pay tribute to Fred’s efforts in training them andseveral comment that without his dedication andcommitment, they wouldn’t have been able to achieve theNational Certificate.

Says one inmate who has recently completed hisqualification, “I’d never done it [forestry] before, and CIEoffered an opportunity. I was lucky to strike Fred whowanted to teach me.”

Inmates who meet the selection criteria also participate inCorrections’ release to work programme, leaving prison

during the day to work at forestry jobs in the communitybefore returning to prison at night.

Fred also uses his industry contacts to help those pupils whoshow promise and commitment to obtain permanent jobsin the industry when they are released.

CIE Primary Sector Manager Scott Gretton says the forestrytraining programme at Tongariro/Rangipo Prison is anexcellent example of what employment trainingprogrammes are all about – helping inmates to obtain jobson release so they are less likely to re-offend.

Chainsaw maintenance andoperation are among themodules required forthe National Certificatein Forestry.

...continued from front page

CORRECTIONS NEWS 9

An inmatewatches asinstructor DaveGalloway leadshim though theequipment checkof a chainsaw.

SENTENCE planning is part of effectiveoffender management, a long-term strategyaimed at reducing re-offending.

Chris Williams, Sentence PlannerWaikeria Prison, explains the process forinmates arriving at Waikeria Prison, in thecentral North Island.

“After completing the receiving process,inmates are sent to the West South Unit foran induction interview and post-sentenceassessment.”

“The induction process explains the rulesof the prison and the inmate’s rights, and thepost-sentencing assessment determines aninmate’s custodial sentence category, whichis separate from the security classificationprocess and the foundation of a sentenceplan.”

According to Chris, time is the keyingredient to creating a successful sentenceplan.

“The philosophy is, regardless of thesentence length, you’ve got to spend the timewith the inmate to make sure you get a goodsentence plan. That makes it easier for staffdown the line to manage the offender.”

An inmate who is categorised as a short-serving inmate, which is anything under 13weeks, is ‘picked up’ by a sentence plannerwithin seven days of arrival at the unit and abasic Living Needs Assessment and Re-integrative Needs Assessment are carried out.

“Because they’re not there for a longtime, we focus on making sure the inmate’sliving, spiritual, cultural and re-integrativeneeds are met, rather than looking at any

long-term interventions,” says Chris.Inmates serving longer sentences may

wait longer before the assessment processcan begin. This delay is to gather informationsuch as pre-sentencing and psychologicalreports, along with judges’ sentencing notes.

If an inmate’s pre-sentencing reportindicates a high risk of re-offending, thesentence planner conducts a Pre-disposingCriminogenic Needs Assessment (PCN).The main purpose of this assessment is toestablish a timeline of events in the six monthsprior to the offence and the emotional, mentaland financial triggers that contributed to theinmate commi t t ing the o ffence .“We try to get them to understand the cyclethat leads to their offending,” says Chris.

“Most inmates aren’t used to verballyexpressing themselves, so retracing steps canbe painful, frustrating and time-consuming.Some interviews can take up to two days tocomplete.”

Chris explains that the PCN alsodetermines an inmate’s criminogenic (crime- causing) needs, such as whether the offenderhas a propensity towards violence or whetheroffences are sexually motivated. Finally, theassessment indicates an inmate’sacknowledgement of and willingness toaddress their offending.

If the inmate is not motivated to addresstheir offending behaviour then attention willbe given to interventions that may improvetheir willingness to participate inrehabilitative programmes.

“Using the information gathered, thesentence planner creates a plan that best meetsthe inmate’s needs and motivation. Once theplan has been written, the inmate leaves theassessment unit and is appointed a case managerwho implements and manages the plan.”

The sentence plan is reviewed on a six-monthly basis. Towards the end of aninmate’s sentence, the sentence plan isupdated to include the reintegrative processthat will prepare the inmate for release backinto the community.

Planning a sentence

Sentence planner Greg Moore runs throughan assessment with an inmate.

Inmate CategoryRemandRemanded in custody awaiting trialor sentencing. A sentence plan willbe completed for a remandee withmore than seven weeks in custody.

Short-servingHas less than 13 weeks to serve.

Functional SupportHas severe behavioural problemsor disability.

MotivationHigher risk of reconviction and re-imprisonment. PCN assessment hasdetermined a low motivation toaddress criminal offendingbehaviour and therefore inmate isnot suitable for rehabilitativeprogrammes.

InterventionHigher risk of reconviction and re-imprisonment. PCN assessment hasdetermined a willingness to addresscriminal offending behaviour andis therefore suitable forrehabilitative programmes.

Inmate SecurityClassificationMaximum securityHigh risk of escape and/or publicharm and/or internal risk. Intensivelevel of supervision. Separatedfrom the mainstream prisonpopulation.

High mediumHigh risk of escape with a moderateto high risk to the public and/orinternal risk. High level ofsupervision.

Low mediumLow level of internal risk andescape. However, may be a risk topublic safety.

MinimumMinimal risk of escape, internal riskor public safety. Low level ofsupervision.

Whether it’s 13 weeks or 13 years, all newly sentencedinmates are assigned a sentence planner who identifiesand creates a tailor-made programme that aims to upskillthe inmate and halt the cycle of offending.

10 CORRECTIONS NEWS

CORRECTIONS NEWS 11

COMMUNITY Probation Service (CPS) staffhave abandoned their Excel spreadsheets andmoved into the twenty-first century with anew activity recording system that makescompleting their timesheets a breeze.

John O’Reilly, Information TechnologyTeam Leader for CPS, says better qualityinformation is a major benefit of the newsystem.

“The information we get through the newsystem is likely to be better considered andmore accurate than in the past. The better the

information, the more robust our forecastingand reporting will be.”

For the last eight years or so CPS staffhave used Excel spreadsheets to documenttheir activities, such as completing pre-sentencing reports, and how long thoseactivities took. But from July this year, staffhave been using the activity recording moduleon the Department’s intranet-based employeeand manager self-service system, whichcombines the flexibility of the old systemwith modern technology, comprehensive

reporting and significantly less data entry.Ann White, a CPS administration officer

based in Napier, was responsible for testingthe system before it was rolled out to staff.While admitting she might be a little biased,Ann says the new system is brilliant and alot easier to use.

“I’m spending much less of my timeinputting data and more time monitoring thequality of information staff are entering intothe system.”

Marking time 21st century style

WHANGAREI is on track to getting extensiveworld-class mountain bike terrain, thanks toa partnership between the local CommunityProbat ion Service, the WhangareiMountainbike Club, and the Northland DistrictCouncil.

The Whangarei Mountainbike Club haslong promoted the development of dedicatedmountain bike trails, but didn’t have thenecessary manpower says CommunityProbation Service Manager Don Robertson.

“The Council owns the forestry landaround Mount Parahaka where the tracks arebeing developed and gave their OK in principleand agreed to pay for things like a Port-a-loo,”says Don.

“The club has the knowledge, andoffenders sentenced to Community Work areproviding the labour,” he says.

“Work started in March, and we are

looking at building up to 30km of trails.”Before work started there weren’t any

dedicated mountain bike tracks in Whangarei,although there were plenty of riders.

“The community workers think it is greatand want to give it a go on the hills themselves.

“They don’t see it as boring work – theyare actually contributing something.”

Community Work is a sentence whichrequires offenders to do unpaid work in thecommunity, as compensation for theiroffences.

Community workers provide around400,000 hours of labour to Northland not-for-profit community groups each year, says Don.

Club vice-president Rob Cave says thelandscape is suitable for building tracks of alllevels.

“At the moment the tracks are virgin andneed lots of work. We are doing learner and

intermediate areas to try and get familiesinvolved.”

More advanced sections will be addedlater.

The club has big plans for the MountParahaka tracks – the design is based on thosein Rotorua, the venue of the 2006 InternationalMountainbike Championships.

Rob hopes the Mount Parahaka area willbe able to host national if not internationalevents once the work has been completed.

“Projects like this are good for the widercommunity, in the long run, not just mountainbikers.”

Whangarei college student Kirsty McKenzie tearsdown the new mountainbike terrain on Mount

Parahaka, Whangarei, during the recent NorthlandSecondary Schools Teams Championships.

12 CORRECTIONS NEWS

Corrections News is the magazine of the Department of Corrections, New Zealand.

The Editor, Corrections News, Department of Corrections, Private Box 1206, Wellington

Phone: (04) 460 3365 • Fax: (04) 460 3208 • Email: commdesk@corrections.govt.nz

correctionsnews

WHAT’S NEW IN THE LITERATURE

Supervising sex offenders in the communityith the enactment of recent legislation

allowing for the extended supervision of

those who sexually offend against children

and are at high-risk of re-offending, it is

timely to look at approaches taken by other jurisdictions.

High quality supervision of sexual offenders following

release improves community safety by reducing sexual

recidivism. Such supervision can reduce risk when it

monitors and addresses factors related to recidivism, and

in a recently presented paper to the tenth Symposium on

Violence and Aggression, Andrew Harris1 describes the

administration of repeated assessment of over 1,000

sexual offenders on community supervision.

Harris notes that quality risk prediction can be

achieved by using instruments such as the Static 99, which

examine historical criminal history and other variables.

However, these instruments do not consider change in

risk over time, nor can they shed light on when those

charged with supervising offenders in the community

should intervene. Consequently, the Dynamic Supervision

Project was set up to shed light on those stable dynamic

factors and more acute factors which are subject to change

over time.

Both the static predictors and the stable and acute

dynamic predictors of sex offender recidivism were

empirically derived from a database that summarises

numerous studies of sex offender recidivism carried out

over the last 30 years.

The project described by Harris involves probation and

parole officers in participating jurisdictions being trained

in the assessment process. Once trained, the assessment

instruments are administered during the first few meetings

with parolees, and are re-administered at regular (six-

month) intervals throughout the supervisory period.

This allows for those charged with administering the

parole process to determine which offenders are becoming

less risky over time, which offenders are becoming more

risky and, most importantly, it allows for the assignment

of offenders to different treatment and supervisory options

based upon their needs.

Harris reports that acute risk factors are monitored

at every meeting between the parole officer and the

offender, as these factors can change very rapidly and

require close monitoring. The assessment itself, which

involves monitoring of access to victims, emotional

collapse, collapse of social supports, hostility, substance

abuse, sexual preoccupations, and rejection of supervision,

only takes a few minutes but provides a valuable

“barometer” of the offender’s risk and allows for

immediate intervention as appropriate.

The Dynamic Supervision Project is operating in all

ten Canadian provinces and two American States, and

involves over 1,000 sexual offenders released into the

community. All data from assessments is being collated,

and at project completion precise mapping of the

relationship between stable and acute risk factors and

sexual and violent recidivism will be achieved. This can

then lead to a series of business rules which will guide

the type and degree of intervention required to achieve

ongoing mitigation of sexual re-offending risk.

This initiative has some similarities to aspects of

processes which are being developed to manage sex

offenders here under the new extended supervision regime.

The findings of this project will have the potential to

assist us in further refining our practices and procedures

in order that we may better manage risk of further sexual

offending.

W

1 Harris A (2004), Sex Offender Supervision in the Community, Tenth Biennial Symposium on Violence and Aggression, Saskatoon, June 20-23, 2004