DRUG COURT GRADUATES GET NEW LEASE ON LIFE

Bryan Bert Carriere Jr., 25, of Opelousas stood tall at the lectern Monday
afternoon, his eyes clear, his voice strong. He had just completed 22
months of soul searching in drug court counseling and was graduating into
aftercare.

Instead of standing behind bars in prison, the employed, married father of
one stood with six other graduates ready for the next phase of their lives.

"This is a great second chance," Carriere said. "We have all made changes
in our lives that I don't think we could have made if not for the support
of our counselors. We can't thank the drug court counselors enough for
sticking with us and showing us we can accomplish anything we want if we
put our minds to it. There is a better way of living by staying clean and
sober."

The St. Landry Parish Drug Court, established in February 2002, has 46
clients and 12 prior graduates. Monday's seven graduates mark a total of 19
people who have completed alternative sentencing. Only two have relapsed
into drug use and are now in prison.

Drug court clients undergo intense treatment that involves psychological
therapy, anger management, community service and drug testing three times a
week.

"It was a grueling process, but I'm just thankful I made it," Carriere said.

About 75 people attended Monday's graduation, a gathering that included
former graduates and current clients and their family and friends, as well
as representatives from parish government, law enforcement and the judicial
system.

All of the graduates took a turn at the lectern. Some wished to keep their
names private, while others were proud to announce to the world that they
had changed their lives. Of the seven graduates, one was a woman, three
were white, four were black, four were in their 20s, and three were more
than 30 years of age. Some are laborers, some are business owners, and all
have jobs.

"Drug court has helped me learn how to raise my son by myself and how to
keep a job," Daniel said.

"If you really want to make it, if your life is unmanageable, do it for
yourself," David said.

Daniel Popillion, 42, of Mallet said he had been using drugs since high school.

"I have been through a lot of trials and tribulations. I never could
control it. I lost my family, lost a lot of business, but I was able to
gain that back through drug court. I had to dig into my soul, and it hurt,
but it's been a blessing for me. In the last year, I have been able to gain
my family back and rebuild my business. I've just acquired a home in
Chataignier, and life is good right now," Popillion said.

The guest speaker for graduation was St. Landry Parish Assistant District
Attorney Anthony Kip Bertrand Jr.

In the last year, Bertrand said, the parish processed 700 felony cases. Of
these, 250 were drug-related crimes, and 70 percent had some connection to
drugs. The Department of Justice said that a half-million prisoners
re-enter society each year, and of these, 65 percent to 75 percent
re-offend within three years - most within 90 days.

"Locking these people up and throwing away the keys is not the answer. Drug
addiction is a sickness, and it should be treated as such," Bertrand said.

The concept of drug court began in 1989 in Florida as a method of
addressing overcrowding in prisons, Bertrand said. Today, there are 1,500
drug courts in the nation that boast a 70 percent retention rate. Of those
who have completed the process, 3,500 parents have regained custody of
their children, 4,500 have re-engaged in child support payments, and 73
percent have been able to maintain steady employment.

"Drug court is a long term treatment process in which each candidate is
assessed individually," Bertrand said.

The court was established through a cooperative effort involving St. Landry
Parish District Attorney Earl Taylor, the four 27th Judicial District Court
Judges, James T. Genovese, A. Frank McGee, Alonzo Harris and Donald Hebert,
St. Landry Parish Sheriff Howard Zerangue and state Sen. Donald Cravins,
D-Arnaudville. It has since earned the active support of Clerk of Court
Charles Jagneaux, the St. Landry Parish Council and St. Landry Parish
President Don Menard.

"Alternative sentencing is not a cakewalk. It is too arduous a task for
some," Genovese said, adding that the graduates who worked their way
through drug court have shown character, credibility and a desire to do
something to better their lives.

He also spoke about the financial savings to the taxpayer each time a
person successfully completes the process. Genovese said it costs about
$22,000 per year to incarcerate a prisoner, as opposed to the $4,500 per
person price tag of drug court. If 10 people get alternative sentencing, he
said, the savings to Louisiana taxpayers is almost $250,000.

In addition, the person who turns his life around is reunited with his
family, maintains a job and becomes a taxpayer instead of a tax burden.