The Adult Division of the Department of Community Justice offers programs for adult offenders to enhance client job search options and which emphasize non-criminal thinking and decision-making skills.

Work Crews

The Work Crew program offers a service by having offenders work in and give back to the community they have harmed. Offenders participate in projects including cleanup of illegal dump sites, restoration and maintenance of local city and county parks, assisting local governmental agencies with public works and working with approved not-for-profits. While on the crew, offenders learn how to report for work, be respectful, work as a team, take direction and gain pride in a job well done; these are skills that relate well to many of them seeking employment. The Work Crew program receives referrals from the Circuit and Municipal Courts throughout Columbia County as well as parole and probation staff. Work crews can also be comprised of those residing in Columbia County Transitional Housing who need to work in lieu of paying rent.

Transitional Housing

The Columbia County Transitional Housing program provides temporary/short-term housing for sentenced offenders who have been released from a corrections facility, or those on parole and probation and who are transitioning within the community and are in need of housing. CCTH is a 20-bed facility which includes a 12 bed men’s house and an eight bed women’s house.  Residents at CCTH have an opportunity to demonstrate responsibility and begin to take control of their lives by finding employment, developing a financial plan, attending treatment, securing a residence and reestablishing family relationships. Learning to make different decisions can help residents stay out of the Criminal Justice System and make their life more rewarding.

Treatment

• Drug/Alcohol Treatment - the Columbia County Department of Community Justice has established partnerships with several treatment providers throughout Columbia, Washington and Multnomah counties, as well as Washington State. Offenders are evaluated and an appropriate treatment plan is recommended. Treatment courses can be in-patient or out-patient as mandated by the court or stipulated in the conditions of probation or post-prison supervision/parole.
• Sex Offender Treatment – sex offender counseling is a specialized area. Psychological and polygraph examinations determine an offender’s deviant sexual behavior and dynamics and are used to arrive at an appropriate and meaningful treatment plan. Treatment includes individual and group sessions to address victim empathy, victim clarification, errors in thinking, deviant arousal cycle, intervention plans, relapse prevention, anger, family reintegration and family skills.
• Domestic Violence Treatment – domestic violence and anger management treatment is a comprehensive program to evaluate and treat offenders who have been convicted of or display assaultive behavior. The program consists of education and treatment to prevent violence. It includes individual and group therapy sessions and tools to help the offender understand and manage anger and behavior without violence.

Pre-Trial Release

Pretrial release evaluates whether a defendant is recommended for release from jail while the criminal case is pending. Through the use of validated assessment tools, the Pretrial Services Program (PSP) makes recommendations to the courts by assessing community safety if the defendant is released prior to trial and supervising them in the community to ensure that they appear at scheduled court hearings.