JANUARY 29, 2009

Second Chances In Drug Courts

I am a big believer in second chances, which is why I was especially happy to read this article in the New York Times about the impact drug courts are having across the country. According to the National Association of Drug Court Professionals, 70,000 offenders are in juvenile or adult drug courts at any given time nationwide, “the fastest-spreading innovation in criminal justice– giving arrested addicts a chance to avoid prison by agreeing to stringent oversight and addiction treatment.”

Offenders sent to drug courts represent a small fraction of addicted criminals, but these courts provide them with an opportunity to sign up for 9 to 18 months (or more) of extreme supervision by a judge, including group therapy, mandatory sobriety testing, and random drug testing. The intent of these drug courts is to emphasis true personal transformation. Many judges, like Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye, feel that these programs serve as interventions that actually work. In fact, studies mentioned in the New York Times article have shown that drug courts have reduced repeated bad behavior by 8-10% nationally and as much as 26% in New York State alone. (Needless to say, NY taxpayers are thrilled.)  Quite a few addicts say they never could have done it on their own, and brag that “drug court saved my life.”

Many lawyers, however, have a completely different take on the situation. A number of them feel that defendants’ rights are infringed upon because of the need to acknowledge guilt (or agree to a plea bargain and sentence) in order to enter the court. This means an addict may go to drug court in order to avoid prison, but may also be trapped by a guilty plea if treatment fails and he/she is expelled from the program. Some critics also worry that drug courts will use up scarce treatment slots at the expense of other addicts who desperately need help.

Regardless of where you stand on this issue, one thing is for sure: the courts are recognizing that one size does not fit all, especially when it comes to drug treatment and sentencing. While it’s no secret that we’re used to having things personalized nowadays - our Facebook pages, our medicine, our bodies, our beds – personalized criminal sentencing is a particularly interesting new example.