What is Drug Court?
Drug Court offers an alternative to traditional processing of nonviolent drug offenders. Federal guidelines require that 10 key components be maintained by each Drug Court. These components are very broad and are:
- mandatory alcohol and drug treatment
- team approach with prosecutors and defense bar to protect participant's rights and promote safety in a non-adversarial manner
- assess and screen participants early in the criminal justice process
- access to a continuum of alcohol, drug and other treatment services
- frequent and random drug and alcohol testing
- weekly review by the judge for Phase I, bi-weekly for Phase II, and once every 3 weeks for Phase III participants
- ongoing program evaluation and collection of statistics
- continuous training for the Drug Court team
- partnerships with other public agencies to generate local support
COMPONENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL DRUG COURT:
- Judicial oversight
- Total participant/case management
- Random and frequent drug testing
- Treatment
- Use of immediate imposed graduated sanctions
Who qualifies to participate in Drug Court?
Addicted offenders with nonviolent drug or drug-related charges/convictions may be eligible to participate. Drug or drug-related charges must be nonviolent, and may include charges such as theft by unlawful taking, criminal possession of a forged instrument, theft by deception, and forgery.
How do defendants enter the program?
After the judge makes a referral to Drug Court, an assessment is conducted to determine the level of drug addiction. A criminal history record check is also conducted to confirm no violent charges for the defendant. This information is presented to the Drug Court team to determine if the defendant is a good candidate for the program. The judge makes the final determination if the defendant will be allowed to participate in Drug Court.
How long is Drug Court?
Drug Court is a multiphase program with many requirements in the beginning and as the participants progress through the program there is a lessening of some requirements so as to put an emphasis on accountability and responsibility. Normally the program takes approximately 1 ½ - 2 years to complete.
Phase 1 is the stabilizing period, and usually takes 4 - 6 weeks, to make sure participants are drug free for at least 30 days before advancing to the next phase.
Phase 2 is the educational period, and usually takes 8 months to complete. This phase focuses on maintaining a drug free lifestyle.
Phase 3 is the self-motivational period, and usually lasts 3 months. Participants in this phase receive less supervision as they prepare to graduate from the program. Participants are required to be available for 6 months after graduation to serve as mentors for new participants or group sessions. Aftercare also involves continued AA/NA meetings, and random urine screens. Graduates are encouraged to contact Drug Court if they experience crisis in their lives.
How does Drug Court begin?
Drug Court is a non-adversarial team approach to criminal behavior resulting from addiction. The usual team consists of the judge, prosecutor, defense bar, law enforcement and treatment provider. Juvenile Drug Courts also have a school representative. Drug Court has a procedure manual that Drug Courts follow, but just as local courts create local rules for district and circuit court, the local team will make decisions on local procedures to be followed. After the team is formed, they receive training about the key components, the requirements for Drug Court, the phases of Drug Court, the difference in mentality from criminal courts, and how individuals qualify for Drug Court. Procedures manuals and all necessary forms are provided.
Has Drug Court been proven to be successful?
Yes, the University of Kentucky's Center on Drug and Alcohol Research conducted an outcome evaluation on Kentucky Drug Court programs in 2001 and in 2004. Both evaluations found that Drug Court graduates are less likely to commit criminal offenses than those who do not enter Drug Court. Two years after graduating from Drug Court, 13.5% of Drug Court graduates were convicted of a new felony offense compared to a 57.3% conviction rate for those who did not participate in Drug Court. Drug Court also saves the taxpayers money through less jail/prison costs, more child support paid, more taxes paid and court system costs.
For further information contact Connie M. Payne, Drug Court General Manager.
Contact Drug Court