The director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy strongly believes that drug courts are an effective way of dealing with the growing problem of drug addiction. Kerlikowske and about 20 of his staff attended the 109th graduation ceremony of the Charlottesville/Albemarle Adult Drug Treatment Court in Virginia. Kerlikowske said that the graduates make "courageous changes" in conquering their drug addiction.
"Anyone who says the government doesn’t listen, that taxpayer money is wasted, should have gone to a drug-court graduation. These are people whose lives are being put back together," said Kerlikowske.
In his role as police commissioner in Buffalo, New York, Kerlikowske helped start a drug court in that city. Kerlikowske said that the hallmark of a successful drug court is one that is tailored to the needs of the community. In a local drug court, those who are eligible to participate have not committed a violent crime. Participants attend school while making regular court appearances, undergoing random drug tests and completing regular behavioral therapy sessions. They receive immediate sanctions or small rewards as they work their way through the four-phase program. Once the graduates have enjoyed a year of sobriety, they can receive a reduced sentence or even have their case dismissed by the court.
Less than 20 percent of drug court graduates have been arrested within a year of finishing the program. It costs about $25,000 a year to keep someone incarcerated at the Albermarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, compared with about $6,000 a year cost for the drug court program.
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