WILMINGTON, OHIO—May
2015—The treatment team for the participants in the six-month-old Clinton
County Drug Court already has reasons to celebrate National Drug Court Month
this month, according to Clinton County Common Pleas Court Judge, John W. (Tim)
Rudduck who helped establish the local court in the fall of 2014.
The court has proven a
positive alternative for a growing number of participants and it was recently
recommended for final certification by the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Commission
on Specialized Dockets when it meets again June 12, Judge Rudduck said.
Drug courts have been
around for 25 years and Judge Rudduck became convinced in 2014 that it was
worth trying to combat the growing number of drug addiction crimes and fatal
overdoses in the county.
The Ohio Department of
Health just reported that Clinton County has the sixth highest per-capita rates
of unintentional drug overdose death rates among Ohio’s 88 counties. There were
16 unintentional drug overdose deaths in Clinton County in 2013, the latest
year for which data is available.
Judge Rudduck initiated
the application process mid-2014 and the innovative docket won preliminary
certification in November. “During our site visit in April, the Ohio Supreme
Court representative was impressed by the collaboration of the treatment team members
and with the community representation and participation at one of our
twice-monthly status review hearings for participants,” Judge Rudduck said.
“She told those in attendance that our court is performing like one that is
been in business for several years as opposed to one just starting up.”
More than 20 defendants
have been referred to the program--mostly by the Clinton County Public
Defender’s Office--and there are currently seven who officially started the
18-month long program and are progressing with varying degrees of success.
Many of the others that
have been referred to the program are still being considered for acceptance and
the judge thinks the program can handle up to 40 participants at one time.
Judge Rudduck named the program the "You-Turn" Recovery Docket because
the goal is to have participants turn their lives around by providing them an
opportunity to address their
substance dependency/addiction
issues with support from the judge, probation
officers, substance abuse counselors and others.
“Though there has been a lot of interest among offenders, the
program is not for everybody,” Judge Rudduck said. “The docket is a highly
structured program that requires responsibility and demands
accountability from participants. They have to be willing to admit to their
addiction and be willing to comply with a highly-structured program that calls
for frequent drug tests and encounters with the treatment team--which includes
myself, local mental health and drug treatment providers and our probation
department.”
The National
Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) celebrates National Drug Court
Month in May to encourage these specialized courts to celebrate successes and to
share them with the communities they impact.
The community support and
interest shown for the local drug court over the last year indicates it is
needed and wanted. “Starting with the public meeting last summer that was
attended by more than 100 people interested in confronting the opiate epidemic,
the support has been overwhelming,” Judge Rudduck said. “Since that time, we
have talked to the faith-based community, job-training centers and educational
organizations and others to begin laying a future foundation of programs for
those currently in the docket and those who participate in the future.”
Members of the drug
court treatment team are also participating in a local coalition formed to
combat the opiate epidemic in the county, the judge said.
Since most of the
active participants in the local drug court are addicted to heroin, the most
telling statistic might be that none have tested positive for heroin since
starting the program, the judge said.
The Clinton County Drug Court is not a separate court but a specialized docket within the framework of
the Clinton County Common Pleas Court. The goals of the program are to divert
these defendants into court-monitored
treatment and supervision that reduces the need for them to be incarcerated.
Judge Rudduck agrees with the NADP’s
assertion that drug courts demonstrate that a combination of accountability and
treatment can transform the lives of seriously addicted offenders. Treating
chronically addicted offenders in drug court can save vast amounts of money, continue
to protect public safety, reunite families and significantly reduce crime and
drug abuse in the community, the judge believes.
To ensure accountability, participants are
regularly and randomly tested for drug use, required to appear frequently in
court for the judge to review their progress, rewarded for doing well and
sanctioned for not living up to their obligations.
“Research continues to show that drug
courts work better than jail or prison, better than probation, and better than
treatment alone,” Judge Rudduck said. “We know overcoming addiction is tough
and admittedly a few of our participants have had minor setbacks. But we deal
with those on an individual basis with sanctions that do not automatically mean
jail time. It is most important that participants be honest with the treatment
team in order for them to succeed.”
The judge encourages those interested in
the court to attend the participants’ status review hearings in the Common
Pleas Court at 1:30 p.m. the first and third Fridays of each month.
The hearings are less formal than
typical court proceedings and the judge encourages comments and observations from
those attending at the end of every session.
According
to the NADCP:
· Over
the past 25 years, drug courts have served more than 1.3 million seriously
addicted people.
· There
are now more than 2,900 drug courts nationwide and they are located in every
U.S. state and territory, as well as 23 other countries.
· Drug
courts now serve 145,000 seriously addicted, prison-bound individuals a year.
· Drug
Courts annually refer more people to treatment than any other system in
America.
· Drug
courts save money, cut crime and serve veterans in need of substance abuse and
mental health treatment.
· Drug
courts are a critical component of criminal justice reform.
· Drug
courts are the nation’s most successful criminal justice program.
· Drug
courts have bipartisan support in Congress.
· Drug
courts save up to $27 for every $1 invested.
· Drug
courts save about $13,000 for every individual they serve.
· 75% of
drug court graduates are never arrested again.
· The
most recent Government Accountability Office report (2012) found that drug
courts save money and reduce substance abuse and crime
· Drug
courts are the nation's most effective strategy in reducing recidivism--
especially among drug-addicted offenders with long criminal histories.
· Today,
more than 2,900 Drug Courts are in operation in all 50 states and U.S.
territories successfully treating 142,000 drug-addicted individuals a year.
· Since
1989, drug courts have saved more than 1.3 million lives and billions of tax
dollars.
-Drug
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