Screening and brief intervention in the criminal justice system

A large proportion of offenders in the criminal justice system have alcohol-related problems. Therefore, it makes sense to implement alcohol screening and brief intervention programs for people in this setting, particularly for impaired driving offenders, who are likely to be alcohol dependent. Although most States mandate screening for impaired drivers, not much effort has been put forth to determine how the screening process could be improved and expanded to the entire criminal justice population. For example, more research is needed on the potential therapeutic benefit of the screening process and on how brief motivational interventions could be incorporated into this process to improve outcomes. To address this, more emphasis should be placed on developing and implementing national standards for screening programs in the criminal justice system, evaluating existing programs, and assuring that these programs provide adequate treatment services to offenders.