Government Accountability Office report on drug courts

"Evidence Indicates Recividism Reductions":
http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05219.pdf (540.8 KB .pdf document)

Friends of Big Island Drug Court, Inc. . . .

. . . lists board members, effective Oct. 1, 2007.

Big Island Drug Court profiled

From Friday's Hawaii Tribune-Herald (free registration required):

Hard program yields new life; Success rate of the Big Island Drug Court far above average

"Drug court offers unique, team-driven approach"

From the Belleville (Ill.) News-Democrat regarding the St. Clair County (Ill.) Drug Court:

In drug court, prosecutors and defense attorneys shed their traditional adversarial roles in the courtroom and cooperate with one another to reduce crime.

County drug court in Minnesota gets first referrals

From yesterday's West Central Tribune:

New London residents are the first referred to county’s new drug court

New drug courts emerging across the country . . .

An M.D. in Maine seeks support for that state's sixth drug court in an op-ed piece published yesterday:

Studies have documented that specialty drug courts reduce crime and recidivism, increase public safety, increase sobriety and recovery among former defendants, and save money. Maine established its statewide system of drug courts in 2001 and operates five Drug Courts . . .

An Illinois county initiated its drug court last month, according to a news article also published yesterday:

In an effort to reduce the number of drug offenders finding their way back into its court system, Mason County is offering a newly developed process for substance abuse treatment to eligible offenders.

It's called drug court, and it is a collaborative effort among the offender and several key players in Mason County's judicial system aimed at permanent reduction in alcohol and drug related crime in Mason County.

"DORGAN AMENDMENT STRENGTHENS DRUG COURT SYSTEM"

From an Oct. 4 press release -

Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) won approval Thursday for an amendment that substantially increases funding for the nation's drug courts, which he said get better results and cost less money than the traditional court system when it comes to fighting illegal drug use.

Dorgan's amendment increases funding for the drug court system from the $25 million originally included in the bill to $40 million. President Bush's Fiscal Year 2008 Budget recommended no funding for the courts.

. . .

"A top priority of any program that aims to combat drug abuse in this country has to be helping those now addicted to get free of that addiction," Dorgan said. "The drug courts have a remarkable track record of doing that, providing treatment and rehabilitation where once there was only incarceration."

. . .

Dorgan noted a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) study which found that offenders who go through the drug court system, rather than the traditional court system, have lower re-arrest and conviction rates.

Drug courts are also a smart investment, Dorgan said. "They not only help drug users get off drugs, they save taxpayers' money. Incarcerating a drug offender costs between $20,000 to $50,000 per year. It costs just $2,500 to $4,000 for a comprehensive drug court program. Better results at less cost. That's a pretty good combination."

The next Maui Drug Court graduation day is scheduled for Oct. 25

Details to follow soon.

Candidate for prosecutor's election in Washington state touts Hawai`i drug courts

Sherman said King County isn't a leader in dealing with domestic violence and with mentally ill and drug-abusing criminal defendants. He said the county should study innovative programs used elsewhere, such as one in Hawaii in which drug abusers stay out of jail by undergoing urinanalysis tests every 72 hours -- but go to jail if they test positive.

Source: "Candidates for prosecutor play to their strengths," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Oct. 3, 2007

Hawaii Drug Threat Assessment

From the National Drug Intelligence Center (May 2002):

http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs07/998/overview.htm

"DRUG COURTS OFFER ADDICTS A CHANCE, BUT IT TAKES WORK"

A report from Sunday's Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader:

Fourteen years ago, Kentucky had no drug courts.

By the end of this year, drug courts will serve all 120 Kentucky counties.

. . .

Since the first drug court was created in Miami 20 years ago, nearly 2,000 have been set up across the country. Drug courts combine intensive supervision, random drug tests, group counseling sessions and frequent appearances before a judge to help participants deal with addiction and avoid prison. Extensive research has found that drug courts are the most effective means of dealing with addicted criminals.

"A Headful of Recovery: Judge Shackley Raffetto and Maui Drug Court"

In its April 29, 2004 issue, Maui Time Weekly profiled Judge Raffetto and Maui Drug Court:

Shackley Raffetto is a gray-haired man with an easy smile and a soft voice who looks every bit like the tax attorney he used to be. That he'll soon be entering his second 10-year term as a Maui Circuit Court judge is also pretty easy to believe. Same with his prior service as a U.S. Naval Reserve member of the Judge Advocate General Corps, or his current work as an instructor in the Defense Institute for Legal Studies, which offers training and advisement to jurists in emerging democracies.

The judge and his books

About the only thing not immediately believable about Shackley Raffetto is his view of how the courts should deal with drug offenders.

"I think a lot of [why people do drugs] is self-medication," he said in a recent interview. "We've had lots of people who've had extraordinary traumas in their youth. I really think a lot of it is self-medication. The first thing an addict knows is that the drug works. It blocks out the pain. There are side effects, like it leads to crime. We ask people who enter the program to write an essay about why they're here. They mention abuse, violence, terrible things. Because they get into drug use and criminality they get marginalized in our society. And we've got to bring them back. Even when you send someone to prison, they're coming back. And we have to address that--make them a county asset again."

National drug court organizations

National Association of Drug Court Professionals
http://www.nadcp.org/about/

The NADCP, a not-for-profit organization, was founded in 1994 by a group of visionaries to reduce the negative social impact of substance abuse, crime, and recidivism by:

*promoting and advocating for the establishment, growth and funding of drug courts;
*providing for the collection and dissemination of information; and
*providing sophisticated training, technical assistance and mutual support to association members.

National Drug Court Institute
http://www.ndci.org/aboutndci.htm

Education
The National Drug Court Institute provides a comprehensive drug court training series for practitioners.

Research
The National Drug Court Institute supports investigative projects aimed at the development of more effective drug court policies and procedures.

Scholarship
The National Drug Court Institute disseminates important drug court specific research, evaluations and relevant commentary.

Drug court comes to another isle community - The Cayman Islands

Via Drug Rehab Referral.com:

Drug Rehab For Drug Offenders Gets A Boost In The Caymans