DRUG COURT STRAIN

The Florida Department of Corrections has cut $5.6-million out of its
budget for drug treatment programs (nearly a quarter of the total), and
that puts a strain on the state's drug courts just as they are proving
their worth. Drug court provides an alternative to prison for nonviolent
substance abusers, and by any measure, it works. The key to success is
effective treatment, however, so the latest budget cuts are shortsighted.

In the first year of Judge Lauren Laughlin's drug court in Pinellas County,
about 900 defendants have been sentenced. In each case, the defendants'
addiction to drugs or alcohol contributed to their criminal behavior.
Instead of being sent to prison, they are put on probation but required to
get drug treatment and to meet other requirements. Judging by the rate of
recidivism, the program has worked exceptionally well. Only 10 percent of
those defendants have been re-arrested, Laughlin said.

Drug court costs taxpayers less in the long run because it keeps people out
of prison and returns them to productive lives. It also keeps families
together, which benefits society. But the key to its success is effective
treatment.

The current budget cuts will hurt both residential and out-patient
treatment programs. For example, Operation PAR in Pinellas County, which
provides intensive residential treatment for up to 18 months, will lose
funding for 62 beds. Most drug court defendants rely on out-patient
treatment, and those programs will suffer as well. Many low-income drug
abusers will not be able to afford the fees for such services as group
therapy, which had been covered in the state corrections budget.

Some drug court proponents see the budget cuts as a threat to their
existence, but that is an exaggeration, Judge Laughlin says. The
drug-treatment community is used to making do with scant resources, and it
will continue to do so. While some defendants may have to wait in jail
longer for a program opening, Laughlin doesn't expect anyone appearing in
her court to go without treatment.

Rather, the budget cuts should motivate drug court supporters to find a
permanent funding source, she said. "We can't live or die by the grants
sword or by legislative tides that ebb and flow based on whether we feel
punishment or rehabilitation is in that year," Laughlin said.

Where might that money come from? Drug court proponents could be more
aggressive going after federal grants, which are less vulnerable to budget
cuts, so far. Another idea, one that shows how desperate the financial
situation is in Tallahassee, would impose an additional fee on criminal and
traffic court cases that would go to run drug court treatment programs.
Pinellas County already has such a fee ($3 per case) that is earmarked for
teen court, in which children charged with minor crimes are judged by their
peers and sentenced to counseling and community service. The Legislature
would have to pass a law allowing the Pinellas County Commission to
establish such a fee for drug court, and it would need the aggressive
support of local legislators.

The recent budget cuts should motivate the community to find a permanent
solution to the funding problem. Drug court has earned our support.