Burke to get drug court

PROGRAM, WHICH STARTS IN 2007, LETS ADULTS ENTER TREATMENT RATHER THAN GO TO JAIL

Sunday, August 20, 2006

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Beginning in January, some of Burke County's convicted drug offenders facing jail time will have an alternative to spending time behind bars.

Thanks to a $450,000 grant through the federal Bureau of Justice Assistance, Burke County adults found guilty of certain drug offenses could instead enter a treatment program to overcome drug and alcohol addiction.
Adult drug treatment courts offer chemically dependent men and women over 18 an alternative to jail time. Those eligible for the program must also be on probation for a convicted drug arrest, headed for jail or prison and show a desire to overcome addiction.

"These people have more than just a few weekends in jail, so that's why the motivation to do the program (is there)," said Catawba County Drug Court Director Reva Cook.

Drug court programs, which carry a 12-month minimum, requires clients to abide by strict rules, including regular drug testing, meetings with case officers, counseling and treatment.

"People think, well, all you do is sit and talk about drugs and alcohol, but that's not what it is," Cook said. "It deals with social skills. How do you go fishing and not drink?"

Each client's participation level, however, can differ greatly, based on an evaluation by a team of court and community professionals, Cook said. Some clients initially attend three meetings a day three times a week, while others attend less frequently.

"Everybody's addiction is different, and everyone's response is different," she said.

The Catawba County program started in May 2005 and, at 85 percent, has since seen the highest retention rate of any N.C. county.

Twenty-nine drug offenders have successfully gone through the program in Catawba County, and only four have been rearrested and returned to the regular court system, Cook said.

Convicted drug offenders must be county residents to be eligible and must not have a history of criminal violence, Cook said.

The program costs an estimated $4,200, which is funded by the federal government. Participants are, however, required to pay $10 a week, as mandated by the state. A year in jail, by comparison, costs the state $23,199, said George Dudley, spokesman for the N.C. Department of Correction. The county will provide office space.

Participants must also be enrolled as students or hold a job to be eligible. Getting work as a felon, however, isn't always easy, Cook said. Burke County Commissioners Chairman Wayne Abele said the success of Catawba's drug court program is a positive sign that Burke drug offenders will see similar progress.

"If we can help one (person), it makes a huge difference in our community," he said.

The Catawba County drug court, which has a presiding judge, bailiff, district attorney and defense lawyer, meets every other Friday, and the Burke program will likely have a similar schedule.

Catawba County is treating 26 clients, and Burke will have the capacity to enroll up to 25 participants, Cook said.

Each grant covers a three-year period, and if Burke County sees positive results in its new program, Cook said, she hopes to write another grant in 2009 that would expand the federal drug treatment court to Caldwell County.

Drug Court History
The nation's first drug court was established in 1989 in Dade County, Fla., by then-State's Attorney Janet Reno.

Now, nearly 1,000 adult drug courts are functioning in the United States and close to 250 additional programs, including Burke's, are in the planning stages, said Caroline Cooper, director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance Drug Court Clearinghouse at American University in Washington.

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