NCJ Number
187029
Journal
Corrections Technology and Management Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: January/February 2001 Pages: 20-23
Date Published
2001
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article describes the computer-assisted inmate risk assessment being developed to enhance offender classification in the British criminal justice system.
Abstract
The British Offender Assessment System (OASys) computer program has been created by the prison service and the probation service to assess the risk that offenders pose to the public. OASys involves filing an offender's name and address, criminal record, details of the latest offense, accommodation, education, training and employability, lifestyle and associates, alcohol and drug use, emotional stability, attitudes toward crime, relationships, and general social behavior into a computer to determine the likelihood of reoffending. The results become a score expressed as a percentage. Three assessments would be conducted: before sentencing, during imprisonment, and after release. This would be done to monitor changes in criminals' behavior and to help calculate what type of punishment and rehabilitation programs are suitable. The statistics generated by the program would be used to tell judges whether criminals have a high, medium, or low risk of reoffending. The main body of OASys consists of 12 sections, each relating to different offending-related factors. The development of the OASys is well underway, with the third pilot program beginning in the probation services of Hampshire, Humberside, West Midlands, North Yorkshire, West Glamorgan, and Bedfordshire. The pilot is also being run in 17 British prisons. The British association of probation officers spokesman Harry Fletcher called the system controversial, as it may diminish the role of individual probation officers in assessing offenders.