Page 17 - CLT072020

NEWS JULY 20, 2020 ¦ 17

Identification Number (SID) and the state law that the and probation and parole services. “Feedback is pro-
offender broke to automatically calculate a risk score. vided to each assessor for each tape that’s submitted,
Similarly, training on the Colorado Pretrial As- and people are required to hit proficiency markers
sessment Tool is not mandated, though it is advised, or attend remedial training.”
while Nevada requires a one-off training for its Ne- There are other ways besides recordings, however,
vada Pretrial Risk Assessment. to confirm whether staff is implementing an assess-
At the other end of spectrum, jurisdictions with ment tool as intended. Inter-rate reliability studies,
more advanced assessment tools often require for instance, determine whether assessments are
ongoing training for the court officials and/or cor- being conducted consistently by different court or
rectional staff. While most do an initial training for correctional officials. For the Alaska Department of
new hires, what “ongoing” entails after that differs Corrections’ Pretrial Enforcement Division, these
from place to place. studies involve having two officials
Some states will adhere to a unknowingly rate the same person
set schedule. Texas and Illinois, using the state’s proprietary pre-
for instance, mandate their cor- trial risk assessment tool Alaska
rectional staff be recertified every Despite some assessment 2-Scale (AK-2S), and then com-
three years to use the ORAS. tools’ sophistication, paring both scores to see if they
match.
But many states will offer re- none can operate without
fresher or booster courses on an some level of manual data When inter-rate reliability
as-needed basis. Kathy Waters, collection, interpretation studies show room for improve-

director at Arizona’s Adult Proba- and input. How states ment, states will look to enhance

tion Services Division, notes they ensure that is done their training programs. For Con-

“basically trained every time that accurately by court and necticut, that meant turning to an
there has been a change” or update outside consultant. “It’s something
to the state’s proprietary Offender correctional officials, we’ve been talking about for a
Screening Tool (OST) and Field long time—it’s not an inexpensive
Reassessment Offender Screening however, often depends on proposition,” says Gary Roberge,
Tool (FROST) tools, which Ari- a tool’s complexity and the executive director of the Court
jurisdiction’s preferences.

zona uses for probation. Support Services Division of the
In Hawaii, the state’s Inter- Connecticut Judicial Branch.
agency Council on Intermediate Still, “we just felt that we’re go-
Sanctions (ICIS) likewise provides refresher courses ing to be able to increase our proficiency with [the
and “Tips of the Months” to reinforce interview and LSI-R] … and make sure all our supervisors and
assessment standards. staff have the latest training and are up to date with
A few states will also take a more hands-on ap- the assessment tool,” he says.
proach by continuously monitoring their staff to Roberge adds, “If we do a good assessment and
ensure certain standards are upheld, and deploy accurately identify risk and needs, we have a better
training when they’re not. shot at reducing recidivism, which is what we’re all
“We routinely require assessors to tape their in- about we’re here.”
terviews, and we send them out to a third-party ¦

reviewer to evaluate accuracy of scoring, overall CT-born, New York-based legal tech reporter
atmosphere during the interview, [and] use of tech- covering everything from in-house technology
niques such as motivational interviewing skills,” says disruption to privacy trends, blockchain, AI, cyber-
Bree Derrick, chief of staff at the Idaho Department security, and ghosts-in-the-machine. Continually
of Correction, which uses the Level of Service In- waiting for law to catch up with tech. (It’s like
ventory Revised (LSI-R) tool for presentence reports waiting for Godot, but without the clowns)

CONNECTICUT
Law Tribune