DRUG COURT IS OFF TO A GOOD START

Harry Hayslip says the Otsego County Drug Treatment Court helped him turn
his life around.

You don't hear many ex-cons offer similar praise for prisons. The court,
operating in Otsego County for the first time this year, offers non-violent
substance abusers a chance to rehabilitate their lives rather than do time.
It is a strict program that includes regular drug tests, court visits,
probation checks and the stipulation that enrollees must be responsible
members of the community - which means holding a steady job and staying out
of trouble.

The focus is on personal responsibility. The program was not designed as a
get-out-of-jail-free ticket and its enrollees are held to exacting
standards. But as anyone who has struggled with addiction knows, a
rehabilitation program cannot succeed without some safety nets. "If you go
into it with the attitude that you're going to slide by and avoid jail that
way, it'll catch up to you," Hayslip said. "There are so many people and
agencies involved ... that if you're slipping up, they'll catch you."

The program recently graduated its first three enrollees, all of whom have
returned as mentors. And with a $466,000 federal grant in the works, the
court will expand to include more enrollees and a wider range of counseling
and rehabilitation services.

Sounds like the program is on the right track.

The idea of using rehabilitation in place of incarceration is not a new
one. Drug courts have sprung up in numerous locales in the last few years,
including nearby Ithaca. And with New York's strict Rockefeller drug laws
clogging prisons and coming under fire from even our Republican governor,
Otsego's drug court is a step in the right direction.

While it may be too early to label the program an overwhelming success, the
enthusiasm generated by its inception certainly deserves notice. In time,
we hope that surrounding counties will use the Otsego court as a model and
institute their own versions of the program. By giving addicts a chance to
change the patterns in their lives, we give them a chance to once again
become contributing members of our communities.

Punishing addicts with prison sentences not only fosters resentment, it
virtually strips them of a chance to re-enter society in a productive
manner. If anything, the sense of despair that leads addicts to substance
abuse is only magnified in prison. And the stigma that comes with a prison
record can make it nearly impossible to find employment.

Encouraging responsibility, instead of taking it away, can only help those
who want to beat addiction.