Pre-Trial Supervision Program (PSP)

Pre-Trial Supervision Program Description

The Pre-Trial Supervision Program (PSP) provides two essential services:

• interviewing arrested defendants in jail to identify which defendants are low risks to re-offend until their next court appearance and who can be released from jail on their own recognizance (this unit is called Recog) and
• supervising defendants who are released from jail pending a court appearance and who require supervision in the community prior to trial (Pre-trial Supervision Program). 

These pre-trial programs support the efficient use of limited public safety resources and protect the community by helping to ensure that local jail beds are available to hold the most dangerous offenders.

Recog Program

Recog staffs the jail 24 hours/7 days per week. Each year, Recog staff interview over 16,000 defendants in custody with a pending Multnomah County charge. Approximately one-third of these defendants are found eligible for release.

Recog staff use a standardized risk-assessment form (which rates each defendant’s risk based on criminal history and other factors) to determine who can be released prior to their initial court appearance.

Release decisions are made based upon the probability the defendant will appear for arraignment, while protecting victims, witnesses, and the community.

Recog policies are developed in conjunction with judges, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, the District Attorney’s Office and other criminal justice system partners.

Pre-trial Supervision Program

PSP case managers and officers supervise defendants released prior to their court hearings.  PSP has two primary goals: 

• protect community safety and
• ensure that defendants attend all court hearings.

 PSP supervision allows defendants an opportunity to remain employed, in school, continue health are services, (drug/alcohol/mental health treatment) and remain in their home while being monitored in the community. 

Defendants are monitored through a combination of phone contact, home visits, office appointments and (in some cases) electronic monitoring.

Defendants are referred to PSP by a judge. PSP evaluates each defendant’s public safety and flight risk and then makes a recommendation to the court about whether the defendant is eligible for supervised pre-trial release. In some cases, judges may order that a defendant report to PSP directly in lieu of a formal evaluation.

PSP supervision ends after the defendant’s criminal case is resolved.

Back To Top