DRUG COURT HONORED AS NATIONAL MODEL

Program Combines Therapy, Supervision

Lesa Jochum looked out at a courtroom packed with a motley crew of former
drunken drivers, pot smokers, cocaine snorters and crackheads, dabbed at a
tear in her eye and said, "I'm sober, and I'm grateful. Thank you."

Applause erupted for her achievement. Hugs went around as if she were
family. And the leader of ceremonies, state District Judge Elaine Guillot,
smiled from the bench like a proud parent.

Jochum, 45, an admitted cocaine addict who pleaded guilty in 2000 to drug
charges, graduated Friday after 17 months of sobriety from the 22nd
Judicial District's drug court, an intense probation program available in
St. Tammany and Washington parishes.

Unlike a typical probation, in which the defendant generally checks in
about once a month, the drug court is a strict, daily regimen that requires
frequent surprise drug tests, therapy sessions, court appearances and
educational training.

But rather than chafe at the intrusive controls on her life, Jochum, who
can now keep a wad of money in her pocket without running out to buy drugs,
said she is thankful for the attention.

"They kept up with us constantly," Jochum, 45, said of her case managers
and the judge. "Having someone to answer to all the time kept me from using."

Leader In The Nation

After four years in operation, the local drug court is showing some of the
lowest recidivism rates for similar courts across the country, said state
District Judge Peter Garcia, who also presides over the program.

Nationally, recidivism rates for drug-related crimes is more than 60
percent. Within the nation's drug courts, that rate drops to 20 percent.
Yet in the 22nd Judicial District's drug court, the rate is about 12
percent, Garcia said.

Citing the local drug court's low recidivism rates, the compassion and
commitment of its staff and the quality of its treatment and educational
programs, the National Drug Court Institute, which is sponsored by the U.S.
Justice Department, recently named the program one of 33 "mentor courts"
throughout the country.

"They will become the educational and training grounds for other
practitioners of drug courts and for those interested in starting up or
improving their current drug courts," said Arlandis Rush, manager of the
mentor court program.

Rush, who visits dozens of drug courts throughout the nation every year,
said the local program stands out particularly for the commitment displayed
by its two judges, Guillot and Garcia, probation officers, therapists,
vocational trainers and case managers.

"Each person I saw was very compassionate and committed to seeing the
participants succeed in the program," Rush said. "They collaborate and
cooperate very well with each other."

Strict Program

Garcia and Guillot both volunteer their time for the drug court, which
includes weekly 7:30 a.m. meetings followed by hours-long court sessions,
during which the judges get a chance to see participants, reward their
progress or sanction them for stepping out of line.

On Friday, Guillot ordered a 33-year-old Folsom man to spend the holiday
weekend in jail for missing a meeting last week at his treatment facility.

"The fact that the judges participate and help probation oversee these
people makes it work," Guillot said. "We're able to give them sanctions
immediately, otherwise it would be six to eight weeks before we even see
them in court" under a traditional probation program.

David Dickson, the case manager supervisor, said the drug court, which
requires daily check-ins, twice-weekly drug tests and multiple treatment
sessions each week, keeps a more watchful eye on participants than a
typical probation office can.

"We're catching people who were slipping through the cracks before,"
Dickson said. "If they're using, we know about it. If they're missing
treatment, we know about it. If they're messing up, they're going to get
sanctions immediately."

Alternative to jail

The drug court is an option to avoid jail for some defendants charged with
nonviolent crimes, such as car theft, vandalism, drunken driving, drug
possession or other crimes often related to drug use. Participants are
screened for eligibility and usually graduate in 18 months.

The goal, however, is not just keeping the defendants from committing more
crimes. Rather, the program's priority is helping them beat their addiction
to drugs or alcohol.

"It's very rewarding to find alternatives to incarceration and see the
difference it makes in people's lives," Garcia said. "If you sent them to
prison, they would be an addict when they went in, and they would be an
addict when they came out. And they would commit the same offenses as they
did before."

Ellen Calvert, the local drug court administrator, says most drug courts
combine the efforts of only judges and counselors, who are expected to keep
the court informed of the participants' progress in treatment.

In the local program, the drug team has case managers who oversee the
participants, coordinating information coming in from probation officers,
family members, doctors and therapists. Then in weekly meetings with the
judges, the drug court team discusses how each participant is doing and
makes recommendations for advancement or sanctions.

The cost of the program is about $4,500 for each of the 200 participants,
Calvert said. The state Supreme Court provides $850,000 a year, which
finances much of the local program, she said.

"It would cost us taxpayers at least $25,000 a year to keep these people in
prison," she said. "It makes so much more sense to do this."