11 GRADUATE FROM ADULT DRUG COURT

Eleven men and women walked into new drug-free lives yesterday, with clean
records and a new outlook on life.

A commencement ceremony was held yesterday for the first graduates of the
Adult Drug Court Program at the Superior Court of Guam, where local
officials, family and friends gathered to celebrate and congratulate those
who have successfully completed the two-year program.

Superior Court Judge Alberto Lamorena, who conducted the ceremony, said he
has worked very closely with the graduates for the past two years and has
seen a tremendous change in the attitudes and self-confidence of those in
the program.

"People who come out from treatment and rehabilitation usually come out
very positive and usually don't come back to the criminal court again,"
Lamorena said.

Lamorena also said drug treatment and rehabilitation techniques are more
cost-effective ways for the community to deal with the situation because it
costs less to treat offenders and have them become productive members of
society than it is to incarcerate them and not know if they have learned
from their mistakes.

The Adult Drug Court Program is an intensive two-year program that involves
regular therapy sessions, drug testing, and various types of rehabilitation
classes in addition to regular court appearances.

Tanya O'Brien said her healthy 8-month-old son, Xander, is a living
testament to the success of the drug program.

"It's given me a whole new outlook on life, and it's given me a healthy
child," Tanya O'Brien said. "I've learned how to go through life without
drugs."

O'Brien attended the ceremony in support of the graduates and hopes to soon
be a part of her own commencement ceremony.

Photo: 'New outlook on life': Tanya O'Brien, holding her baby, Xander,
applauds the graduates of the first Judiciary of Guam Adult Drug Court. A
member of the drug court's second cycle, she credits the program for
helping people turn their lives away from drugs.