ADDICTION HELP MAY REPLACE JAIL TIME

DURHAM -- Because of high costs and broken equipment, Durham judicial
officials recently lost the ability to put criminal suspects awaiting
trial on electronic house arrest.

But now, the same officials have an idea they consider even more
exciting - one that could provide meaningful help for some suspects
rather than merely keeping them off the streets pending trial.

They propose to offer treatment evaluations to nonviolent drug
suspects shortly after they are arrested, rather than waiting until
they are convicted months later.

As an incentive, those who agree to early evaluations would receive
bail bonds -- low enough to allow them to get them out of jail.

If an evaluator recommends treatment, suspects could accept or reject
it. And the district attorney has promised that no information from a
pretrial evaluation will be used against anyone in court.

Evaluations would be conducted by an agency known as Treatment
Alternatives to Street Crime.

Now, drug suspects usually are ordered to TASC evaluations when they
are convicted. But that often takes months -- sometimes a year or
more. Drug treatment could help suspects refrain from committing new
crimes while they await trial, officials suggested.

"Most crime is related in one way or another to illegal drugs," said
District Court Judge Ann McKown, chair of a local substance-abuse
task force. "I don't think you'd find any disagreement about that."

McKown said, for example, that most home and car break-ins are
committed by people seeking items to sell for drug money. In
addition, many violent crimes are the result of drug-induced
frenzies, she added.

McKown described the proposal for quicker TASC evaluations as "a
great idea." But she said officials have much planning to do before
launching the proposal.

A preliminary meeting was held June 29. Many more meetings are
expected to follow.

"I think we've got a good game plan," District Attorney Jim Hardin
Jr. said. "It could put people in treatment months earlier . and help
break the cycle of substance abuse. . I'm encouraged."

Hardin estimated that "at least 80 to 85 percent of the crime we see
has a substance-abuse component to it." In Durham, that could account
for some 16,000 new criminal cases each year -- not including
motor-vehicle violations, according to Hardin.

But the proposal for quicker TASC evaluations is not without hurdles.

For one thing, TASC already is operating at full capacity and has a
waiting list, said Evester Bailey, the agency's director of crisis
and court services.

Bailey said only three TASC employees perform substance-abuse
evaluations. That staffing level allows no more than six evaluations
a day, or about 30 a week, he added. As a result, some criminal
suspects must wait as long as two weeks for the evaluation.

There also is a bottleneck in treatment services.

Bailey said two agencies offer treatment for people referred from
TASC: the Criminal Justice Resource Center and the Mental Health
Adult Substance Abuse Program. But only the Mental Health program
would be open to people awaiting trial, and it already is stretched
thin, according to Bailey.

Still, Bailey said he supports the proposal for quicker TASC evaluations.

"In theory, it is great," he said. "It has a lot of merit. I'm
excited about it. My motivation is getting people into treatment at
the earliest moment possible. Our only barrier is whether we can
muster sufficient manpower to do it."

District Court Judge Marcia Morey also expressed concern Friday about manpower.

"Ideally, this sounds good," she said. "Realistically, I don't know.
It takes resources. It takes people. I'm not sure we have enough."

Defense lawyers raise a different concern.

"I'm kind of wondering if it's unconstitutional," said veteran
attorney Brian Aus. "You're almost forcing people to do something
they might not otherwise do. Is it coercive? I'm not certain about
that."

Assistant Public Defender Lawrence Campbell, president of the Durham
Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, said some drug suspects might
provide too much information during pre-trial TASC evaluations.

"Certainly, anybody in jail will take any opportunity to get out,"
said Campbell. "Some will sell their souls. They'll say anything. It
could come back to hurt them. They could put themselves in jeopardy."

In that regard, Campbell said, the district attorney's promise not to
use pre-trial TASC evaluations against people is crucial. But he
speculated that the promise might not be all-encompassing enough.

Defense lawyer Elaine Gordon voiced the same concern Friday.

"What if someone made a statement that dealt not with the current
pending criminal charge but with a previous crime?" she wondered.
"Would it be used against him?"

At the same time, Gordon and other attorneys agreed it can't hurt to
get drug addicts into treatment as soon as possible.

"Drugs are the pervasive problem for criminal clients," said Gordon.
"It is the main reason these people get in the trouble they do. We
definitely have to look at any and all ways to help them."