Pubdate: Mon, 28 Apr 2008
Source: Pacific Daily News (US GU)
Copyright: 2008 Pacific Daily News
Contact: http://www.guampdn.com/customerservice/contactus.html
Website: http://www.guampdn.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1122
Author: Stephanie Godlewski
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?159 (Drug Courts)

DRUG COURT FUNDING IN JEOPARDY

The Superior Court of Guam's adult and juvenile drug  courts could be 
shut down if federal funding for them  ceases.

Dan Tydingco, Judiciary of Guam policy and planning  administrator, 
said President Bush's fiscal 2009 budget  proposal eliminates 
drug-court funding for Guam and  dozens of U.S. jurisdictions.

Since 2003, Guam's Adult Drug Court and Juvenile Drug  Court have 
helped hundreds of drug offenders become  clean and sober through a 
system that holds them  accountable for their actions, while reducing 
their  relapse rate and their involvement with the courts,  Pacific 
Daily News files state.

According to the National Association of Drug Court  Professionals, 
the average rate of relapse for people  who complete the drug court 
program is between 4 and 29  percent.

"Less than 2 percent of graduates and 5 percent of  participants had 
new court cases," Tydingco said.  "Those stats show they repeat drug 
offenses four times  less than a person that didn't participate or 
graduate  from the program."

But it's not just helping drug offenders from repeating  drug-related 
crimes -- the program also saves the  government money.

By going through the drug court program, offenders  aren't 
incarcerated, which means tax money is not  expended on housing and 
feeding program participants.

Tydingco said the Juvenile Drug Court spends about $11  a day for 
each youth in the program. He said to keep  that same youth confined 
at the Department of Youth  Affairs would cost more than $100 per day.

This is not the first time that the island's two drug  courts have 
faced budgetary problems.

Bush's fiscal 2008 budget consolidated funding for all  U.S. drug 
courts, and it then became a competitive  process for jurisdictions 
to obtain funding. This was  different from years past when each 
locale was given a  fixed amount -- Guam received $1 million: 
$500,000 each for the adult and juvenile courts.

"The only alternative would be to secure greater local  funding, or 
try and figure out new funding sources,"  Tydingco said.

If the court were to discontinue its services, the drug  cases would 
be handled in the same manner as any other  case, Tydingco added.

"Adults and juveniles, who would otherwise be eligible,  would have 
to face costly or more expensive forms of  punishment that aren't as 
rehabilitative," Tydingco  said.

Tydingco said the Judiciary is hoping that Congress  doesn't pass the 
budget without making some sort of  appropriation.

"(Supreme Court of Guam) Chief Justice (Robert) Torres  has written 
to our congresswoman to get funding  restored for those programs," 
Tydingco said.

Guam Delegate Madeleine Bordallo has joined 31 of her  colleagues in 
sending a letter to U.S. Congressmen Alan  Mollohan and Rodney 
Frelinghuysen, the chairman and  ranking member, respectively, of the 
Subcommittee on  Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies.

In the letter, members of Congress are requesting that  $40 million 
in funding be restored to the drug court  programs, adding they were 
imperative in turning around  the lives of those addicted to drugs.

"If the Discretionary Grant Program is not funded, the  National 
Association of Drug Court Professionals  estimates that more than 
160,000 individuals will not  receive drug court treatment and the 
progress made  against the rising tide of methamphetamine abuse and 
addiction will face a staggering halt," the letter  states. "Drug 
courts are often the first and only  alternative to incarceration 
that most drug users have  to become healthy and productive members 
of society."

Local support

If the push from Congress doesn't yield the needed  funding, one 
senator said he'd find the funding locally  before letting the 
program shut down.

Sen. Benjamin J. Cruz said the drug courts are  important, especially 
when looking toward the future.

"I think that we as a community have an obligation to  assist in that 
effort because we don't want to lose  another generation to drugs," Cruz said.

The senator said he hopes the federal funding will come  through, but 
noted that the Judiciary still has time to  adjust its fiscal 2009 
budget plans in case it doesn't.

"Hopefully, we can get it through a federal grant, but  if not we as 
a community are going to have to find it  somewhere else," Cruz said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom