Drug Court
An increasingly widely used alternative to jail time
Drug court diverts offenders from the criminal justice system if the particular aspects of their cases meet the program's guidelines. Drug court offers people a chance to enter into substance abuse treatment programs. If successful, criminal charges are ultimately dropped and person does not have a criminal record of the offense.
Crimes of property are often committed by a person who is trying to maintain a substance abuse habit. Theft, robbery, and hot check writing are offenses most often committed by persons seeking to support a chemical dependency. Sending such persons to prison does little to reduce they threat they may pose to the community. When released, persons with untreated substance abuse problems usually return to their old ways.
Substance abuse treatment and other supportive programs which help a person regain control of his or her life is the best way for society to invest its tax dollars. Drug court is the vehicle through which these programs are put into action.
However, drug court poses some alarming risks to the future rights of American citizens. In cases where the crime is not a crime of property, but simply the crime of drug possession, drug court becomes a vehicle by which the government imposes a specific code of private behavior upon a person under threat of imprisonment.
DPEG supports drug court as an option for persons who commit crimes against people or property as part of a lifestyle of substance abuse.
DPEG, Inc. does not support drug court as a method of controlling a person's private behavior. See our Position Paper on Drug Court.
LINKS
Court Ordered Treatment for Drug Offenders is Much Better than Prison: Or Is It?
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