Pubdate: Mon, 28 May 2001 Source: Times-News, The (ID) Copyright: 2001 Magic Valley Newspapers Contact: http://www.magicvalley.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/595 Author: Joseph J. Kalange Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?159 (Drug Courts) Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n878/a04.html DRUG COURT WON'T STOP ADDICTIONS This letter is written in response to the May 15 editorial regarding the local drug court and how it might stop addiction. The editorial claims that the drug court will "break the cycle of addiction," which is seen as a cause of most of the crime in the Magic Valley. They also claim that a drug court will save taxpayers money. These claims are unfounded. The drug court will most likely not stop the cycle of addiction. In fact, most addicts admitted to front-end strategies such as "rehabilitation" end up relapsing and eventually ending up back in the court system. Case in point: Robert Downey Jr., the award-winning actor, is in court once again on charges of drug possession. He can't seem to successfully fight his addiction, even though he's been to many drug treatment programs. No spouse, child, job or even court-ordered drug rehabilitation program can be successful until an addict decides for himself or herself to stop. You cannot force anyone to halt a drug addiction. The drug court will probably not save taxpayers money either. Taxpayers will still end up paying for incarceration, since drug treatment is usually unsuccessful. Plus, the community will have to bear the tax burden a special judge, staff and venue devoted to the task of eradicating addiction will create. I bet it would be enlightening to find out what percentage of people admitted to court-mandated drug treatment programs end up back in front of a judge. If you want to stop crime resulting from drug abuse, you have to throw offenders in jail. Those who beat their spouses, neglect their children and steal obviously deserve to be incarcerated, as it is no one's privilege to violate the rights of others. Let's not spend money on a frivolous campaign like the drug court. It will not be able to correct morality, nor will it save taxpayers money. JOSEPH J. KALANGE Twin Falls - --- MAP posted-by: GD