DRUG COURT DESERVES ANOTHER CHANCE

Denver Should Resurrect a Program That "Made a Huge Difference in The
Neighborhoods and in the Lives of the People Who Were Arrested."

Denver's once-promising drug court, shuttered as a cost-saving measure
in 2002, deserves another chance.

Created in 1994, the system became a national model for other drug
courts because it was able to quickly process low-level drug offenders
through the court system and get them into treatment within 72 hours.

Today, they languish up to 90 days in jail before they can get
treated.

But with other district courtrooms overwhelmed with offenders, the
judges decided three years ago they couldn't afford the luxury of
having one judge reserved solely for drug cases.

Until this country comes to grips with its failed war on drugs, the
judicial system will continue to be bogged down as far too many
low-level drug offenders clog jails and courtrooms.

Answers, like Denver's former drug court, are out there - they just
need to be funded and supported. That's why we were pleased to hear
that Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey is trying to determine
how to resurrect the court and how to pay for it.

The city's Crime Prevention and Control Commission, a group of city
officials, citizens and justice officials, has been studying ways to
unclog city jails and is investigating a drug court. The commission
has more than $1 million earmarked for programs but hasn't determined
if that's the direction Denver should head.

Morrissey says the costs likely would involve more than just a judge
and staff, but also additions to the DA's office and public