Holistic Defense

Cartoon depicting an owl teaching life skills to some repeat offenders of the animal world

Education and Community Support: Key to Avoiding Repeat Arrests?

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A typical cycle for someone caught in the U.S. criminal justice system due to poverty-related issues may look something like this: Risky behavior on the individual’s part leading to arrest for a low-level crime such as shoplifting, followed by court-appointed community service. Repeat. An A2J Lab study aims to find out whether a community diversion program offers a better chance of breaking this cycle than community service programs.

Cartoon reflecting whether legal services can help families avoid child welfare involvement

A2J Lab Study in the Field: Could Holistic Legal Services Help Families Avoid the Child Welfare System?

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Conducting randomized control trials in the law can be a decade-long (or longer) process. Our “Child Welfare” project evaluates whether families with children who face poverty-related legal and social challenges can avoid unnecessary entries into the child welfare system with the assistance of holistic legal services – a combination of social worker services and a traditional attorney-client relationship. The study is five years in the making and still just half-way through completion, but we’re sharing its origin and process anyway.

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