Pubdate: Thu, 19 Aug 2004 Source: Herald-Sun, The (Durham, NC) Copyright: 2004 The Herald-Sun Contact: http://www.herald-sun.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1428 KEEP DRUG COURT ON JOB IN DURHAM The Herald-Sun Aug 18, 2004 : 3:51 pm ET Drug addicts often don't get help until hitting the rocks at the bottom of the pit. Their addiction may have already robbed them of home, friends and self-respect, but the wake-up buzzer may not sound until they lose something so precious that the loss is intolerable. Such as their children. For addicts so strung out that child neglect becomes child abuse, the Department of Social Services can invoke the ultimate penalty, removing children from their parent and placing them with a foster family. At that point, the parent's choice is stark: Choose between your drugs and your children. Having both isn't an option. That was the question on the table for Alice Campbell after her two girls, ages 10 and 7, were taken from her while she was out feeding a serious cocaine habit. She had already sunk far into addiction, working the streets as a prostitute, risking disease and violence just to keep using. When the children were taken, Campbell said it felt like a knife in the heart, but she still couldn't stop. Campbell told her story in an article by John Stevenson in Wednesday's Herald-Sun. One of the little miracles she experienced was a persistent inner voice telling her to seek help. "I didn't want to live like that anymore," she said. Another miracle was that help was available in a special Durham court. Those who come to Durham's family treatment court, one of only two such programs in the state, aren't like defendants in criminal court. They come willingly and must agree to live by the rules, including drug testing and mandatory Narcotics Anonymous meetings. Falling off the wagon brings jail time: 24 hours for the first offense; 48 for the second, 30 days for the third. For addicts like Campbell, family court offers one huge incentive for success -- the possibility of getting the kids back. After being drug-free for nearly two years, that joyous day came last month for Campbell. "I thank God for family drug court," she said. They are very strict, but it's the best thing that ever happened to me." Chief District Judge Elaine M. O'Neal presides over the court. Some participants can't break free, she said, "but it works more often than not." And when dealing with drug addiction, that's saying quite a lot. It goes with the territory that programs like this have funding problems. A $150,000 grant from the Governor's Crime Commission ran out recently, and family drug court is now running on $67,200 from the state legislature. A program achieving success against two of society's most pernicious ills -- addiction and family breakdown -- deserves favorable attention at budget time. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart