State Drug Court Wins National Recognition

TRENTON –– According to an April 2007 report from the state Commission to Review Criminal Sentencing, compelling evidence exists that individuals who use illicit drugs are more likely to engage in criminal behavior and that many offenses are committed by individuals who had used drugs or alcohol during or just prior to committing their crimes.
Because of that evidence, the New Jersey judiciary operates a Drug Court, which targets nonviolent offenders in an effort to stop the cycle of abuse of alcohol and other drugs and related criminal activity through intensive supervision, treatment and judicial oversight.
Drug courts are collaborative efforts between the judicial system and drug treatment professionals.
State figures suggest drug court participants are much more likely to stay out of trouble than offenders who aren’t in the program. Only 6 percent of drug court graduates have been convicted of another crime, while 43 percent of non-program drug offenders were reconvicted after their release from prison
The state drug court, which began with a small pilot program in Camden and Essex counties in 1996, was recently recognized by the National Association of Drug Court Professionals at the group’s annual training conference. New Jersey is only the second state, after New York, to receive the award.
New Jersey, which currently treats more than 3,000 drug-dependent defendants, was presented the award for committing the resources and leadership needed to ensure that the drug court program is available for all eligible offenders in the state.
Since the inception of the state drug court, over 1,000 participants have graduated from the five-year program and nearly 600 are in the final of four phases.
“This award is well-deserved recognition of the success we have experienced in New Jersey,” said Judge Philip S. Carchman, acting administrative director of the state courts.
“Drug courts not only break the cycle of addiction and crime, they also help reunite families, heal communities, and direct tax dollars toward effective treatment and rehabilitation rather than ineffective punishment and incarceration.”
Figures suggest drug courts make financial sense because participants are required to not only pay fines but also maintain employment, which makes them productive members of society who pay taxes and carry health insurance.
Cape May/Atlantic Drug Court Judge Michael Connor said putting an offender through the drug court program costs half as much as incarceration, which costs taxpayers approximately $11,000 per year.
The state Office of the Public Defender supports the drug court program.
“Drug court programs are holistic by design and offer substance abuse treatment with a broad continuum of services,
intensively supervised in a non-adversarial forum with the power of the robe leading the way,” said Public Defender Yvonne Smith Segars.
Contact Hart at (609) 886-8600 Ext 35 or at: jhart@cmcherald.com