Housing First and Jail Utilization: A Pilot Study

Purpose: Mass incarceration is estimated to cost $182 billion dollars annually and approximately $30,000 per inmate per year. Prior research suggests approximately 15% of jail inmates have homeless histories. Persons experiencing homelessness are often arrested and incarcerated for homelessness related non-violent crimes and have a higher probability of recidivism. Multiple studies have examined the impact of the Housing First model in reducing emergency shelter, jail, and hospital costs. Given the implications of housing interventions for reduction and prevention of arrests and incarceration among persons experiencing homelessness, this study examined the impact of a Housing First model housing intervention on arrests and incarceration among homeless adults and addressed the question: How does a single-site Housing First permanent supportive housing (PSH) intervention impact the jail utilization patterns of its tenants?

Method: Four years of publicly available data from the County Sheriff’s Department database on arrests and incarcerations in the County Jail were analyzed using a sample of tenants in a single site housing first permanent supportive housing program (≥18 years, n=85). Utilization patterns were examined at four time periods: Two years pre-intervention, one year pre-intervention, one year post-intervention, and two years post-intervention. Arrest, date entered jail, date exited jail, charges, and socio-demographic characteristics were collected for each time period and used to calculate number of tenants arrested, number of days incarcerated, and charges associated with incarceration. SPSS 22 was used to calculate descriptive statistics for socio-demographics, health characteristics (Baseline, Year 1, Year 2), and jail utilization by time period (2 Years Pre-intervention, 2 Years Post-intervention). Paired sample t tests were used to examine differences in utilization between the two years prior to moving into the housing program and two years post baseline.

Results: The majority of tenants were not arrested or jailed in the two years before (n=31, 60%) or two years after the housing intervention (n=42, 81%). In the two years pre-intervention, 21 tenants were arrested 102 times. Most tenants who were arrested were arrested once (n=9,17 %) or two-three times (n=7, 14%). Of the tenants arrested or jailed two years pre-intervention (n=21) or post-intervention (n=10), there was an 82% reduction in arrests and an 89% reduction in jail nights. In their last two years of homelessness prior to housing, tenants were arrested an average of 2.0 times (SD=5.5) but only 0.30 times (SD=0.90) two years post-intervention, t=-2.3 (49) p = 0.03. In the two years pre-intervention, tenants spent an average of 23.6 days (SD=53.2) in jail. Post-intervention, they spent an average of 2.4 (SD=7.7) days in jail, t=-2.9 (49) p = 0.01.

Conclusions: The study suggests that a Housing First permanent supportive housing intervention was associated with a reduction in tenant criminal justice involvement, specifically arrests by the County Police Department and incarcerations at the County jail. Findings have implications for service provision improvement and discharge planning for persons experiencing homelessness. Future research should focus on the role of varied jail discharge housing dispositions in future arrests and incarcerations.