By Stewart Boiteux & Adam Teperski

To examine the operation of the NSW Domestic Violence Electronic Monitoring (DVEM) program, and to estimate the association between DVEM program participation and recidivism. METHOD Entropy balancing was used to match 226 DVEM participants on parole with 768 parolees who met observed program eligibility conditions but did not participate in the program. Using multivariate probit regression, four recidivism outcomes were compared between offenders participating in DVEM and the matched offender sample, including the probability of any reoffending, domestic violence reoffending, Apprehended Domestic Violence Order breaches, and the probability that an offender on a community order was imprisoned for a new offence or breach of the conditions of their order. RESULTS Offenders participating in DVEM were around 7 percentage points (p.p.) less likely to return to custody within a year. DVEM participants were also significantly less likely to reoffend with any offence (7.1 p.p.), a domestic violence offence (10.5 p.p.), and an ADVO breach (8.7 p.p.). While the study assessed many factors related to both DVEM placement and reoffending, it is unable to exclude the possibility that unobserved variables and/or factors related to participation in DVEM may be influencing the results. CONCLUSION DVEM participation is associated with significant reductions in the probability that an offender reoffends and/or is imprisoned within a year of release.

(Crime and Justice Bulletin No. 255). Sydney: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research. 2023. 30p.