PA Corrections Department Issues State Intermediate Punishment Progress Report

HARRISBURG, Pa., Feb. 2, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Department of Corrections Secretary John Wetzel today announced the release of the DOC's State Intermediate Punishment (SIP) Program 2015 Performance Report.

"This report shows that SIP is showing some positive recidivism reduction results," Secretary Wetzel said.  "Offenders in SIP have a lower recidivism rate than comparable offenders who serve traditional sentences during three years after release from prison, and while this is good news, we continue to see that SIP is underutilized.  Only 24% of eligible cases are being referred.  If more were referred, we could see a greater cost savings."

Wetzel said that SIP saves $33,250 per participant and has saved the commonwealth a total of approximately $79.9 million since the program was started. 

"At a time when everyone is looking to decrease costs and save money, programs like SIP are huge cost-savers," Wetzel added.  "In addition to saving money for the commonwealth, SIP also helps offenders break their addictions and change their behaviors resulting in their being more pro-social and crime free.  Even after all of the work done to educate judges, district attorneys and public defenders about SIP, why more counties don't take advantage of this win-win program is puzzling to me."

Highlights of this report include:

• The 3-year overall recidivism rate is 10 percentage points lower for SIP participants than for a comparable group of inmates who do not go through SIP (42% vs. 52%). 
• SIP saves $33,250 per participant and has saved the commonwealth a total of approximately $79.9 million since the program was started. 
• In 2014, the new SIP-HOPE initiative was implemented.  The initiative is based on the Hawaii HOPE program, and is intended to build even better results for SIP by utilizing certain and swift sanctions for drug relapse in the community phases of SIP. 

The SIP program was created in response to concerns about the link between substance abuse and crime and the finding that many persons commit crimes while under the influence of alcohol and/or other drugs. SIP was designed as a sentencing alternative, with the goal of enhancing public safety through a period of incarceration while at the same time reducing recidivism through intensive substance abuse treatment. Act 112 of 2004, which created the SIP program, was signed into law by Governor Rendell on Nov. 19, 2004, and became effective on May 18, 2005. Act 122 of 2012 expanded and modified SIP eligibility requirements. 

SIP consists of four phases and lasts a total of 24 months.

• Phase 1 involves confinement in a state correctional institution (SCI) for a period of no less than seven months. Currently, all male SIP participants are sent to either the Quehanna Boot Camp or SCI Chester, and female SIP participants are sent to either the Quehanna Boot Camp or SCI Cambridge Springs for programming. During this first phase, at least four months are spent in a therapeutic community (TC) treatment program, which is an intensive inpatient alcohol and other drug treatment program.
• Phase 2 involves a minimum of two months in a community-based TC treatment program.
• Phase 3 involves a minimum of six months of outpatient addiction treatment. During this period, the participant may be housed in a community corrections center or placed in an approved transitional residence.
• Phase 4 consists of DOC supervised reintegration into the community for the balance of the 24 months of the program. In September 2014, SIP-HOPE was introduced into phases 3 and 4. 

The three key components of the HOPE model are: 1) clearly defined and communicated expectations of rules; 2) close, enhanced monitoring of program participants for adherence to the rules, and; 3) swift and consistently-delivered, but moderate and graduated, sanctions for each and every infraction of the rules. The HOPE model is intended to deter rule violations and reduce recidivism, with the swiftness and certainty of punishment mattering more than the severity of punishment.

In accordance with Act 112 of 2004, which created the State Intermediate Punishment (SIP) Program, the DOC is required to provide the Judiciary Committees of the Pennsylvania General Assembly with a program performance report in alternating years with the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing. This report provides current descriptive statistics and performance analysis of the SIP program and is available on the DOC's website at www.cor.pa.gov under "Statistics-Reports."

Media contact:    Susan McNaughton, 717-728-4025
Susan Bensinger, 717-728-4026

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Corrections

Related Links

http://www.cor.pa.gov/