Pubdate: Fri, 26 Nov 2004
Source: Hattiesburg American (MS)
Copyright: 2004 Hattiesburg American
Contact:  http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1646
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?159 (Drug Courts)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration)

DRUG COURT CHANGES MANY LIVES

Shenet Brewer had one shot to turn her back on a life of trouble with drugs 
and the law.

A year later, she was among the first graduates of the area's first drug 
court which takes non-violent offenders and puts them on a rigorous program 
to change.

"Life after drugs," she mused at a ceremony on Tuesday. "Who would've thought?"

It's appropriate that the event marking the court's anniversary came two 
days before Thanksgiving. After all, many of those at the birthday party 
Tuesday credited the program with giving them a new life.

The drug court was initiated by Forrest-Perry Circuit Judge Bob Helfrich, 
who made addressing narcotics cases a top priority when he was elected. 
With private money from the Asbury Foundation, Helfrich has been able to 
extend the service to 82 people.

If they had been sent to jail, Helfrich said the drug offenders would have 
learned "only to become better criminals." Instead, many of them went 
through a program that mandates attendance at 12-step meetings, checks on 
work records and requires drug testing.

The results are quantifiable - about 70 percent of participants pass 
through without falling back into drug abuse.

Beyond the numbers are human success stories that stale statistics don't 
relate.

"This program has given me the chance to provide a sober life for me and my 
child," said Lindsay Sly, who is expecting a baby and just started a new job.

Backing up the program's participants are Helfrich and a small staff. 
Without their passion for helping others the program wouldn't be nearly as 
successful.

The program has been studied as a possible model for other programs. It is 
possible that representatives from other courts would travel to Hattiesburg 
to see it in action.

The success must also be measured against a backdrop of a troubled past for 
the Forrest-Perry Circuit Court, where prior to Helfrich's election those 
charged with crimes could wait up to three years in jail without their day 
in court. The system was so mired with backlogged cases that it ceased to 
function effectively and many records weren't even computerized.

All of that has changed. So, too, have the lives of many of those who have 
passed through the drug court.

Changing lives is a difficult task. The drug court's staff and participants 
are up to the challenge.
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