Discretionary decision-making in community based residential facilities: An exploratory study of the dynamics between halfway house staff and offenders on conditional release

Community Based Residential Facilities (CBRFs) are an integral part of the adult corrections system, housing nearly half of the federal community offender population. Despite the critical and professional role CBRF staff play in supervising offenders in the community, little is known about the dynamics between staff and clients and how these dynamics may affect the success of offenders on conditional release. Through interviews with staff, the current study explores the dynamics between CBRF staff and clients, and how staff use discretionary decision-making based on these dynamics. The findings suggest the decision-making of staff about offenders is impacted by whether they view offenders as "ideal" or "non-ideal". This, in turn, may affect the dynamics between staff and the supervising parole officers. Both of these factors may contribute to the success or failure of offenders on conditional release. The implications of these findings for correctional policy and for future research are explored.