Legal and Evidence-Based Practice (LEBP) in Pretrial Practices Project

The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (VDCJS), in partnership with the Virginia Community Criminal Justice Association, will conduct an 18-month project intended to build upon prior and on-going work in Virginia and contribute to a national effort to implement Legal and Evidence-Based Practice (LEBP) in pretrial practices. The full implementation of evidence-based practices in pretrial services will improve supervision strategies for defendants, increase successful pretrial outcomes, and reduce unnecessary detention. LEBP for pretrial services will be guided by Constitutional principles and safeguards, applicable state and federal laws, and research-based methods proven to be effective with the pretrial population. In this project, VDCJS proposes to: Complete design and implementation of statewide research and application of risk-based pretrial supervision guidelines to local agencies; Provide differential training for the implementation of the pretrial supervision guidelines to all Virginia pretrial agencies depending on the research design and group assignment; Produce process and outcome research reports that detail the development and validation of the release supervision guidelines and; Produce a training manual to guide localities in Virginia and nationally in implementing the pretrial release supervision guidelines. NCA/NCF