SAVING CHOICES Saving Choices

Zero Tolerance With A Difference

St. Louis County has made that mission a cornerstone of its popular,
effective drug and alcohol treatment program called Choices. It's
based on the assumption that some jail-bound drug offenders could be
rehabilitated by addressing drug problems that play a role in criminal
behavior.

Choices gives offenders an alternative to serving time. The 120-day,
12-step recovery program includes classes on anger management,
domestic violence, learning to control impulsive behavior and
resisting temptations on the streets. In five years, Choices has
helped some 1,200 inmates.

But a 6.7 percent cut ordered in the county Justice Services $21
million budget has put Choices, which costs about $950,000 a year, and
other programs on the block.

Some County officials argue that drug offenders enrolled in Choices
could be served by community-based programs. But unlike
community-based programs, Choices takes offenders off the streets,
where it's easy to be seduced by old temptations and old habits.

Years of experience with tough "three-strikes" drug laws have shown
that long jail terms are no substitute for structured, intensive
alcohol and drug treatment programs in helping lawbreakers overcome
their addictions and avoid recidivism. Choices graduates told
Post-Dispatch columnist Bill McClellan and reporter Martin Van Der
Werf how the program helped them get their lives in order. Their
compelling stories are more reason county officials should look for
other savings in the budget and try to keep the Choices program intact.