Texas inmate Alejandra Tapia argued her case all the way to the United States Supreme Court, and she won on a unanimous vote. Tapia has now established a U.S. precedent that judges cannot extend prison sentences for the sole reason of getting inmates into drug rehab programs.
Tapia received a 51 month prison sentence for her drug offenses, but this was longer than it needed to be. The trial judge on the case noted that the duration was actually extended so that Tapia could become eligible for a federal drug treatment program which operated in the prison.
Sentencing reform laws, which the U.S. Congress passed years ago, state that the only purposes of imprisonment have to do with "retribution, public protection and deterrence." In this case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that this policy was violated.
Additionally, the Supreme Court stated in its decision that courts should not ever consider rehabilitation as part of a prison sentence, because, “imprisonment is not an appropriate means of pursuing that goal.”
Narconon Riverbend’s Drug Abuse Solutions blog commented that this case confirms something that has been argued by the drug rehab community for quite some time: namely, that too much emphasis is placed on punishing and incarcerating drug offenders, and not enough is put into effective drug rehabilitation. “
Texas drug rehabs and Texas drug abuse education programs are the real solution to the drug problem in the state. And that’s true with any state,” said a drug counselor from Riverbend.
Narconon Riverbend Retreat is one of the nation’s premier long term drug rehabilitation centers. A non-profit organization with a success rate of over 75%, Riverbend Retreat has helped literally hundreds of graduates to lead drug free lives. Riverbend Retreat’s hotline is 1-877-340-3602.
