Pubdate: Wed, 03 Jun 2009 Source: Columbian, The (WA) Copyright: 2009 The Columbian Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.columbian.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/92 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?159 (Drug Courts) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment) KUDOS, DRUG COURT After 10 Years, 291 Lives Have Turned Around, and Taxpayers Are Among the Beneficiaries Three-fourths of drug court graduates are not arrested in the two years following their participation in the program. By contrast, 80 percent of incarcerated drug offenders are re-arrested after they are released. Even drug offenders who don't graduate from drug court -- but at least gave it a try -- have lower recidivism rates than defendants who receive no treatment for drug abuse. But set aside for a moment the humanitarian component of drug courts and look at the issue through the prism of a taxpayer who doesn't give two hoots about drug addicts, whose only interest is return on investment. From that perspective, drug courts make good sense because, for every dollar spent on this type of treatment, an estimated two dollars are saved somewhere down the line in arrests not made, trials not needed, and costly imprisonments not imposed. Although you don't hear much scoffing or criticism about drug courts these days, that wasn't always the case. When then-prosecutor Janet Reno began drug courts in Miami 20 years ago (four years before she became U.S. attorney general), the concept was not universally accepted. Too much coddling of criminals, skeptics complained. Throw the bums behind bars, cried members of the zero-tolerance crowd. And when drug courts began here in Clark County 10 years ago, there likely was ample cynicism about offering drug offenders an alternative to getting jailed. Even the rigor of the drug court -- regular court appearances, inpatient treatment, a 12-step program, behavior modification, court approval of where you live and work -- probably did not convert many of the critics. As the local drug court continued for a decade, a discouragingly low graduation rate (only about one-third of those who enter drug courts finish the program), fortified the critics who insisted it wasn't working. Today, though, 291 people are no longer drug addicts, thanks to the local drug court. Even more important for taxpayers, 291 people no longer are criminals, and no longer are clogging the judicial system. Expensive, publicly funded jail cells serve no purpose for these people. They've turned their lives around. Last month the local drug court observed its 10th anniversary, with a May 15 celebration at Esther Short Park. Much of the credit for that decade of success belongs to Superior Court Judge James Rulli, who started the felony drug court in 1999. Among the success stories, as Stephanie Rice reported in the print edition of Sunday's Columbian, is Kenneth Jennings. At age 18, Jennings entered jail for the first time and began 13 years of legal problems that included two dozen bookings. He chose drug court only to avoid incarceration, not so much for the therapeutic value it offered. Slowly, though, the conversion took hold, and now Jennings is a married, self-employed general contractor and co-chair of the Clark County Substance Abuse Advisory Board. He has advanced from a drain on the public dime to a role model in his community. The drug court is so effective, it has inspired creation of other therapeutic courts including family treatment courts (for parents at risk of losing custody of their children), mental health courts and drug courts for juvenile offenders. The collective track record of these therapeutic courts is not perfect, but they represent an effective, positive alternative to incarceration. Therapeutic courts, for the most part, have survived any drastic cuts during these tough economic times. That's because budget writers understand the value of moving beyond the punishment phase, and doing what's necessary to change those who enter the judicial system. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake