Addiction treatment for alcohol offenders in a health system setting?

Project date range: 2001 - 2005
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Justice

Description

In Germany, there has been some political discussion on how to treat criminal offenders with alcohol disorders. Although treatment orders have been a possible element of sentencing for a long time, a less traditional option of addiction therapy in a health system setting was established in the 1980s for drug offenders only (ss. 35 ff. Betäubungsmittelgesetz). In this model, the execution of a prison sentence may be suspended in favour of addiction therapy outside the prison system. This was the background of a project based on an extensive research review. The empirical study focused on a multi-method approach to collect basic information on the identification and treatment of alcohol offenders in the German prison system and on possible alternative options.

Methods

Expert hearings; file analysis of alcohol offenders in prison; surveys of judges, public prosecutors and prison officials

Publication

Heimerdinger, Astrid (2006). Alkoholabhängige Täter - justizielle Praxis und Strafvollzug: Argumente zur Zurückstellung der Strafvollstreckung bei Therapieteilnahme. Wiesbaden: KrimZ. (Kriminologie und Praxis (KuP); Bd. 52). [Online publication]