Drug Court Reflection

I can’t speak for the entire State of Texas but Travis County drug court is making a positive impact on offenders’ lives. Two judges who manage Travis County’s drug court are directing addicts into a court supervised treatment program instead of incarceration. Drug courts like the one in Travis County have successfully handled nonaggressive defendants with drug and alcohol addictions. People who complete drug court programs rarely fall back into substance abuse. Per four drug-court judges surveyed, about 10 percent of program graduates commit new crimes. That’s a recidivism rate of one-fifth that of traditional probation programs. Which shows drug courts can ease the strain on congested penitentiaries and save taxpayer money. A study done by

Drugs have been known to be detrimental to American society. Commonly known as “ The war on drugs”. Majority of individuals who are incarcerated have been convicted of some type of drug offense and if not a drug related crimes. In many instances, a person can be sent to a jail or prison without receiving the required treatment to help the individual overcome their drug of choice. Remarkably, there is a court solely focused on an individual with a drug problem, which is known as Drug courts.

Many different states have begun sending nonviolent drug offenders to various kinds of drug treatment program the state offers. By doing this, it has significantly reduced the problems with overcrowding. If an individual is arrested and charged with simple possession of a drug and no other crime is being commented, then this person is doing no harm to anyone else. They should be given the opportunity to try and make a change in their life and beat the addiction. Instead, if this person is thrown into jail, they are still going to be an addict with a criminal record now and will not be able to be a contributing member of society. (Everett 1 ).

Drug Courts came about as a result of a backlogged court system and a steady, rapidly increasing prison population. Drug courts are a form of diversion that helps the offender through rehabilitation and the community through an increased sense of protection, which serves the best interest of everyone. Drug Courts are community based intermediate sanctions that incorporate treatment principles into the Criminal Justice System and divert drug offenders from traditional punishments of probation and prison. The objective of drug courts programs is to treat the underlying problems of addiction among drug offenders and eliminate participants’ future drug use and crime.

The regular way they deal with the drug problem and people getting caught with the drugs isn't working. All they do is charge them and send them to jail. That isn't teaching them anything. For one they aren't getting major consequences for it. Second they aren't getting any help from stopping the drugs. They basically just pay money and sit in a cell nothing getting taught to them how to stop or not getting punished for it. These people need help stopping so they can stop letting their families down and ruining their lives. The drug court is there for this purpose. It is there to help people that want to recover and get their lives together. This teaches people that what they have been doing is wrong and gets them on the right track. When people learn and go through this program it will decrease the number of crimes. This court is not a waste of money, this is a program that will gradually give people their lives and family back. I would say numbers of people would give their money to get their love ones back and out of drugs. With most people money is nothing when it comes to

Drug court is also known to reduce recidivism rates. This was done through participation of the defendants and justice professionals who are involved in the program. The issues defendants have been face with are address when they are sent to drug court. Most defendants that come into the criminal justice system are faced with depression, homelessness, lack of education, lack of employment, medical and mental health issues, poor motivation, lack of family support and community support.

Drug courts improve lawbreakers mental wellbeing, allowing for a halt of criminal activity. Improvements of wellbeing is a result of drug courts. A study from Mendoza et al (2013, p.787) found psychological symptoms have a significant impact on the completion of drug courts, implicating the likelihood of relapse and recidivism. There is a clear relationship between the completion of drug courts and a reduction of substance abuse and child wellbeing; allowing many drug affected families becoming reunified (Child & McIntyre, 2015, p.67,85). A study from Boles et al displayed that children reunified with offenders who partake in drug court treatments are safe from repeated mistreatment when compared with children not associated with drug court treatments (Boles et al cited in Child & McIntyre, 2015). It is clear drug courts increase mental wellbeing and allow for offenders to return to a family orientated

Putting in charge of developing a drug court it is dream come true because I have always eager to help people overcome any obstacles they deal with in the life. Being a drug addict is something very serious and that cause you to lose your dignity, money and loves ones because once you addicted to the drugs you will go the extreme miles to get that drug and it will become a necessity instead of a need for you. Since I have been putting in charge of developing a new drug court that can help someone, I must first discuss how I will develop that court and criteria but first before discussing the who is eligible, who is not eligible, and the elements of how the drug court will consist of but first I have to explain what is a drug court and provide

My life after prison was even harder. I stayed clean of all drugs, and since alcohol was never a problem for me, I would drink and drink often. I continued a relationship with a drug-dealer that was extremely toxic and abusive. However, it would only take one visit to the hospital to trigger my relapse. I was prescribed Percocet which gave me the euphoric high of heroin. It caused me to search for stronger painkillers in higher doses. Morphine kept me calm, able to deal with any problem and solve it, but really destroying the person I really was. I believe God stepped in to show me enough is enough after surviving a car accident that should have killed me due to overdosing behind the wheel. This was my wake-up call. I immediately put myself into a program here in Reading, and my ex was arrested for selling drugs and is serving 5-10 years still till this day. I cut everyone and anything that had to do with using, and focused on getting my life back in order. If I continued, it was certain jail or death. I chose life for the first time ever.

Other models include more intensive measures involving campus drug courts and the involvement of administrators, local police, and the judicial system. Dutmers delves into the legality of this issue and provides a new viewpoint by explaining that prevention programs should implement campus drug courts, instead of focusing prevention solely on educational methods. As this idea is new and innovative, most research is based off the success within state mandated drug courts. Nonetheless, campuses will too reap the benefits that result from these establishments, which includes a decrease in repeat offenders. Dutmers notes that, “only 27.5% of offenders recidivated” (203). This direct correlation can be taken a step further because if people are not

The Drug Court: Treatment Program Feedback Survey will be made available to current participants who are in the program, prospective graduates, and prior participants who have recently failed or completed the drug court program. With current drug court participants, the survey packet will be given to them during their weekly judicial visitation. For the prospective graduates, the survey instrument will be built into graduation requirements. For prior participants who have already completed, been terminated, or dropped out of the program, surveys will be mailed to their latest address along with a prepaid postage envelope. In the drug court survey packet, there will be a confidentiality/consent form, which will need to be signed prior to taking the survey. Surveys will be made available via paper-form or online, which will be noted in the packet. Those who opt to take the survey online via the individual drug court program website will be given a user id and password associated with each participant’s name. This slip will be provided in all survey packets, making the online survey an option for whoever has computer access.

When facing criminal drug charges, there is nothing more indispensable than a criminal drug attorney. The legal consequences in these types of criminal cases can be grave. A drugs attorney is absolutely necessary to help a defendant through the complex legal landscape that is to follow. It is important to note, though, that not all attorneys are the same and that it is important to be careful when choosing a lawyer. There are certain key factors to look for in a drug attorney search that any competent criminal drug attorney will have.

For my Civic Engagement project, I plan on studying and learning more about Drug Courts. After reading about drug courts in the state courts chapter and after watching the video, A Better Deal, about the nations first drug court, I immediately got hooked on the topic and wanted to learn more about the court in depth. Before we go more in depth about the topic, let’s take a step back and ask, “What is drug court and what is the purpose for it?” Drug court is a specialized court, meaning it is it’s own court. Drug court is a diversionary program that offers offenders a second chance to correct their drug problems and also offers an alternative route rather than going to prison for breaking the law due to their drug abuse. The goal for drug courts

Currently, drug courts have been proven to be successful at reducing recidivism of offenders. In the United States there are about 120,000 people receiving help in order to rehabilitate them and to try to reduce the chances of recidivism (Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2011). These programs require individuals to participate in the programs for a minimum of one year. During this year the individuals are required to appear in court and be drug tested at

When my sister hit her teenage years, she hit a slippery slope of partying and drugs. Our family went through some hardships with Jelly’s drug and alcohol addiction. Jail time, drug rehab, in and out patient; however, my mother and I stood by Jelly’s side through it all. We were working on mending our family wounds when it happened. An old love and drug buddy of my mothers, Jeff, had kept in contact with her over the years. Still a frequent drug user, Jeff somehow convinced my mother to let him move in with us. Jeff was not just a drug addict; he was a thief, a liar, and a woman beater, as we would soon find out.