At their meeting on Tuesday the McLean County Justice Committee approved a grant agreement between the State of Illinois, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority and McLean County for $160,895.
The funds are for adult redeployment, a state initiative to reduce the number of non-violent offenders going to the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) by providing financial incentives to local jurisdictions to increase community-based supervision and services in an attempt to reduce recidivism.
Besides the goal of trying to help individuals stay out of correctional facilities, other objectives are to save tax dollars by reallocating state resources to develop less expensive alternatives to incarceration and improving access to intervention.
Adult Redeploy Illinois (ARI) was established by the Crime Reduction Act (Public Act 96-0761) to provide these financial incentives to local jurisdictions. Administered by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, ARI provides grants to counties to provide local programs in their areas, in exchange for reducing the number of people they send to IDOC.
The Crime Reduction Act is based on a premise that crime can be reduced and likewise, the costs of the criminal justice system can be reduced by understanding and addressing the reasons why people commit crimes. Another premise is that local jurisdictions know best what resources are necessary to reduce crime in their communities. Evaluation processes with performance measurements are required to measure any effectiveness of services in reducing crime.
ARI is an example of a national best practice called “performance incentive funding.” Results expected from ARI include reduced prison admissions, controlling costs and an end to the cycle of crime and incarceration.
McLean County became an ARI site in July 2011 with services programs that provide treatment and enhanced supervision to moderate to high risk offenders eligible under the Crime Reduction Act that are not being served in other McLean County probation programs. The McLean County ARI program supports probationers who want to succeed through programs such as random drug testing, motivational Interviews, cognitive behavioral therapy, clinical evaluation, graduated sanctions and medication assisted treatment (MAT).
Michael Donovan was appointed McLean County Court Services Director in 2019. Donovan previously served as a the agency’s deputy director and before that a probation officer. Anyone with questions regarding this program can contact him at 309-888-5360 and/or michael.donovan@mcleancountyil.gov.
