The Legacy Project: A Collaborative Approach to Reducing Recidivism

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2012

In order to address the high concentration of crime and criminal justice expenditures within Southern Phoenix, the Maricopa County Adult Probation Department and the Arizona Department of Corrections developed a collaborative model of offender supervision. The Legacy Project aligns and enhances supervision strategies between probation and parole. The Legacy Project improves the transition of offenders released from prison and addresses the barriers that greatly impact the successful reintegration of offenders into the community. It provides comprehensive training to program staff to increase knowledge and use of evidence-based supervision strategies with offenders in the area. The Legacy Project increases collaborative reentry efforts among stakeholders interested in reducing recidivism within the Southern Phoenix community, including local police, government agencies, faith-based organizations, treatment providers, service providers, neighborhood associations, and community members including ex-offenders. Adult Probation achieved its goals in the Legacy Project by improving the rate at which probationers successfully completed supervision and by reducing the number of probationers revoked to prison or jail. The Legacy Project increased public safety, reduced criminal justice system costs, improved collaborations among the agencies involved with the Maricopa County criminal justice system, and increased collaborative efforts among community stakeholders involved with offender reentry.