FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONDITIONAL RELEASE OF PERSONS ACQUITTED BY REASON OF INSANITY - A DECISION TREE APPROACH

Most NGRI (not guilty by reason of insanity) acquittees are hospitaliz ed for some period of time following acquittal which raises the questi on of when an individual can be safely released into the community. Th e conditional release (CR) of persons acquitted by reason of insanity, therefore, provokes the question of public safety. This study examine s the CR systems in four states-Connecticut, Maryland, New York, and O hio. A study sample of 529 persons acquitted as NGRI from 1985 to 1987 was followed up for at least five years to determine who is condition ally released. Following a description of the CR systems, findings sug gestive of the role of dangerousness and diagnosis as predictors of CR are presented. Personal characteristics are also significant factors in predicting who will be released. The length of hospitalization for this population and other descriptive factors such as history of hospi talization arrests, substance abuse family violence, and living arrang ements are also addressed.