New drug court would aid adolescents
Posted on Monday, June 23, 2008
Plans are under way to establish a juvenile and family drug court program in Washington County.
The only hurdle left is securing $ 1 million to fund startup costs, according to state Sen. Bill Pritchard.
“ We won’t have a definitive answer until we’re back in session and the budgets get approved, ” he said. “ I’m extremely confident that we will be able to get the funding because the Legislature and government are all for it. ”
The program, which would serve the 4 th Judicial District, could be one of at least 10 juvenile and family drug court programs across the state. Juvenile drug courts are intensive treatment programs established within and supervised by juvenile courts to provide specialized services for eligible druginvolved youth and their families. Cases are assigned to a juvenile drug court docket based on criteria set by local officials to carry out the goals of the drug court program.
“ The drug court bill I passed last session allows the (juvenile ) drug court program, ” Pritchard said. “ There were four in the state, but two closed for lack of funding. We have 10 drug court judges now who have expressed an interest, including the two that have closed. I’m working with state agencies to get in their budget the treatment money and the funding for probation officers and counselors. ”
In addition to $ 1 million in startup costs for the first year of the juvenile drug court program, Pritchard estimates an additional $ 2 million will be needed to fund the second year of operation.
“ That’s very little money compared to what it costs in human and societal losses, ” he said. “ It costs more just to put them in jail. ”
Services offered by juvenile drug court programs include: substance abuse treatment, mental health, primary care, family and education.
Benton and Garland counties are the only two counties in Arkansas that currently operate juvenile drug court programs.
If approved, the Washington / Madison County juvenile and family drug court program would be presided over by Circuit Judge Stacey Zimmerman.
Pritchard said the juvenile program would be structured differently than the adult drug court program, which is currently headed by Circuit Judge Mary Ann Gunn. The program, which is one of 39 adult drug courts in the state, is designed to give nonviolent drug offenders a second chance. Through random drug testing, monitoring, treatment and other requirements, participants who might otherwise have ended up in prison have a chance to build lawabiding, productive lives. Those who can’t make it through drug court end up back in the regular judicial system. “ Adult drug court participants have to be addicted to drugs or alcohol, and they have to have committed a nonviolent felony, ” Pritchard said. “ In juvenile drug court, it would be a diversionary program. Anyone involved in a (Families in Need ) case or a delinquent case would be a candidate. We haven’t totally decided on what model we would like to use yet, but we know probation and treatment would be an integral part of it. ” According to the U. S. Department of Justice, juvenile drug courts provide intensive and continuous judicial supervision over delinquency and status offense cases that involve substance-abusing juveniles through a coordinated and supervised delivery of various support services needed to address the problems that contribute to juvenile involvement in the justice system.
“ We’re trying to get some inpatient and residential treatment for the juvenile program, ” Pritchard said. “ We would look at expanding at Youth Bridge. We realized that not everyone needs residential treatment, but sometimes it’s necessary if the family isn’t functioning. You have to remove them from the atmosphere. ” Diane Bynum, spokesman for Horizon Adolescent Center in Fort Smith, said the need for residential treatment is critical, particularly in Arkansas, where only 36 beds are available.
“ The need in Arkansas is greater than 36 beds, ” she said. “ Only 5 percent of adults and adolescents receive treatment. That means 95 percent don’t. ”
Bynum spoke to members of Project Right Choice — a methamphetamine and drug awareness coalition — during the group’s monthly meeting on Tuesday.
“ Substance abuse is a chronic disease that takes more than a couple days to treat, ” she said. “ Unfortunately, providers in the state can’t meet the need. That’s why we’re trying to get all the players to the table. There are a lot of people working to come together on this. ”
In addition to limited residential treatment options, Bynum said, most people seeking substance abuse treatment can’t afford the high cost, which typically isn’t covered by insurance. The cost of adolescent treatment is higher because it requires more resources, more training and a structured learning environment, she said.
“ As we’re able to educate people and prevent them from turning to a life of drugs, I think we’ll start seeing more industry and a healthier economy, ” she said. “ Investing in adolescent treatment is one way for the state to take a step forward. ”
Though structured differently, Pritchard said, the juvenile drug court program will likely compare to the adult drug court program in terms of growth and success.
“ I think it will start out small and grow quickly, ” he said. “ Most likely, we’ll have 20 to 25 participants during the first year. ”
Washington County Drug Court started in 1999 with five people. The program is now permanently funded and provides services to more than 150 participants. The drug court has an 85 percent retention rate and a 12 percent recidivism rate, compared to a national average graduation rate of 70 percent and recidivism rate of 17 percent.
According to the U. S. Department of Justice, more than 140 juvenile drug courts have been established in the United States since 1995 and more than 125 are currently being planned.
“ My passion and my goal has always been to get a juvenile and family drug court going, ” Pritchard said. “ The goal is to get them at an early age before other addiction problems develop. If you reverse peer pressure, these people will naturally become leaders and good role models for their kids and break the generation trend. ”
Based on findings from the Washington County Drug Court, many participants begin using marijuana or alcohol before moving on to more serious drugs like methamphetamine. Statistics indicate that methamphetamine addiction typically begins after one to three uses. Additionally, most drug court participants admit to initially using drugs at the ages of 12 or 13.
“ From an economic and social standpoint, it’s the right thing to do, ” Pritchard said. “ I call on everyone to encourage the Legislature and governor to adequately fund this program because it will return huge benefits. I would foresee it going statewide, where every district would have a family and juvenile drug court program established. ”
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