DRUG COURT WILL OPEN FOR YAKAMAS

TOPPENISH, Yakima County - The Yakama Nation expects a
first-of-its-kind tribal drug court to be up and running next year,
and its chief judge says it's an idea whose time has come.

By breaking the cycle of drugs and crime, the court will reduce the
number of jail inmates and repeat offenders and save money, said Rory
Flint Knife, the Yakama Nation's chief judge.

A three-year federal Justice Department grant will pay initial costs,
said Anna Ward, tribal court deputy director.

Sixteen other tribes, including the Spokane and Makah in Washington,
have either juvenile or adult drug courts, Flint Knife said.

"We would be the first tribe in the nation to have both," he
said.

The drug court will be voluntary and open to all nonviolent
offenders.

Like other drug courts, the Yakama Nation's requires that participants
go to treatment programs, take drug tests and meet regularly with the
judge and other court officials. But Flint Knife also wants it to
incorporate Yakama traditions and culture.

That could involve sweat lodges or talking with elders, Flint Knife
said.

Spokane Tribal Court Chief Judge Mary Pearson does not require
participation in cultural activities, but the option is available.

The Spokanes' drug court began in July, Pearson said. So far, 11
people have participated.

"We don't have a lot of people in the (drug) court yet because it's a
very stringent program," she said.

The Spokanes' drug court is funded through a two-year Justice
Department grant, and Pearson worries that isn't long enough for the
program to take hold and reduce the problems created by drugs and alcohol.

Without the grants, the tribe doesn't have the money to fund the
program, she said.