DRUG COURT A CHANCE TO COME CLEAN

Program Focuses On Rehab, Not Jail

Almost every Thursday, St. John the Baptist Parish Judge Madeline Jasmine
hears from 24 residents who are trying to recover from drug addiction.

Sometimes she hears stories of triumph -- a recovering crack addict who
gets a job and reunites with his family, she said. Other times she hears
stories of struggle -- people who return to their old habits and old
friends; they need more intensive treatment.

For more than a year, Jasmine has been running the parish's drug court
program, which offers drug-addicted criminals treatment rather than jail time.

"Drug addiction is a sickness," Jasmine said. "You don't treat an addiction
by putting people in jail. You can only keep them there so long. They will
come back even worse and go back to the behavior that put them in there in
the first place."

The drug program got a boost recently when the Parish Council allotted
$25,000 to the program to help keep it going for another year. Parish
President Nickie Monica asked the council to finance the program for a
second year because he thinks it is helping some residents kick their drug
addiction. Eventually, the program might prove cheaper than keeping addicts
in jail, Jasmine said.

The year-old program is similar to ones in Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany
and St. Charles parishes.

People booked with drug-related crimes for the first time are screened to
see if they qualify for the program. Their crime must be a misdemeanor,
although not necessarily a drug charge. If they qualify, they can volunteer
to participate. They are required to plead guilty to the crime, but rather
than go to jail, they receive probation and

They get regular counseling, and find work or return to school. Each week
they report to court to update Jasmine on their progress.

After participants are clean for 18 consecutive months, they no longer must
report to court, and the crime is cleared from their record. If they slip
up, they must restart the clock and begin again.

The program is financed mainly with money from the Parish Council, the
Sheriff's Office and the district attorney's office. The state Supreme
Court also contributes, Jasmine said.

Jasmine could not say exactly how much it costs to run the program each
year, but she said the $25,000 parish award covers almost half of the
program's operating budget.

"We need everything we can get," Jasmine said. "Hopefully, as we continue
to grow, we will get continued support from the parish."