DRUG COURT NEEDS $56,000 TO CONTINUE SERVICE IN BLOUNT

A unique criminal and chemical rehabilitation service offered in Blount
County is in danger of being discontinued for lack of funds.

The Blount County Drug Court, one of the first in Tennessee and one of only
four in operation in the state, provides an alternative to traditional
incarceration. Through an extensive system of counseling, drug testing and
court monitoring, drug-addicted criminals in the county can get clean. This
prevents continued criminal activity tied to drug use.

The program cost has been paid for three years by federal treatment and
administrative grants. However, the treatment grant has expired, and the
drug court needs $56,000 to continue offering treatment through September.

The court also needs full funding for treatment -- offered on an outpatient
basis through Blount Memorial Hospital -- for the remainder of the
2002-2003 fiscal year, which brings the total needed to about $200,000.

The Blount County Budget Committee was approached last week by Blount
County Circuit Court Judge D. Kelly Thomas who asked the committee to try
and earmark funds to ensure the drug court can continue.

"It's the only approach to criminal justice I've ever seen that is
preventative," Thomas said. People typically charged with drug-related
crimes designed to support a drug habit, such as shoplifting, theft or
prescription fraud, "keep coming through the system again and again."

And that comes with a price tag.

Blount County Budget Director Dave Bennett said it costs "between $18,000
and $20,000 a year per prisoner," including all costs, he said.

"If 10 never come back, that's $200,000 a year in savings," he said, though
the actual dollar savings to the county would be hard to nail down. The
total annual drug court budget -- all of which is currently funded by
grants, except for $69,000 in county litigation tax -- is $308,000 a year.

The program is geared toward serving 30 nonviolent offenders per "class,"
which can take up to two years to complete.

Participants are expected to begin treatment with three hours of counseling
a day for four days a week. That is coupled with three drug screenings a
week, depending on progress in the program, and a requirement to perform
community service and hold down a job. The screenings also are done for
alcohol.

Demanding Program

It can be a daunting challenge to those who participate, though demand for
the program easily exceeds program services.

"They have to make so many changes to their life," said Blount County Drug
Court Coordinator Teresa Irwin.

Successful graduates are expected to totally revamp their lives, including
peer groups, hangouts and old habits.

"It's a very vigorous program," Irwin said. But worth it, according to the
court's coordinator.

"Typically when a case comes before the court, there's a judgment handed
down and the person is either sent to jail or put on probation, but they
don't appear before the court again unless they violate terms of the
judgment," Irwin said.

The drug court approach allows the judicial system to more closely monitor
the progress of offenders, rather than simply allowing them to do their
time or complete their probation and go on their way. The traditional
method leads to high rates of recidivism, as offenders often go without
treatment for the chemical dependency that got them into trouble in the
first place.

Now, the problem is: How does the county continue to pay for it?

Blount Memorial Hospital is currently providing virtually all treatment
services for free, pending stopgap funding or discontinuation of the
program. The administrative grant is intact through 2003.

"We don't know the answer yet. We might try to get some funds from the
cities," said Bennett in reference to pending receipt of the first Blount
Memorial in-lieu-of-tax programs.

Costs Vs. Benefits

The county share from those programs is only about $40,000, but the total
of county, Alcoa and Maryville shares approaches $200,000. County officials
and Thomas will approach city officials in coming weeks to see if there is
a cost-sharing opportunity on the philosophy that the businesses of Alcoa
and Maryville bear the brunt of drug-related theft and fraud.

Other potential revenue sources for the program would be an increase in the
county property tax or a possible jail fee.

Irwin is convinced the program works as a solid alternative to
revolving-door drug-related violations.

One particular graduate of the program stands out.

"It was an elderly woman who had been using (drugs) with other family
members. She is now clean and working full-time for the first time."

The woman has also, Irwin said, begun to rekindle contacts for the first
time in years with nondrug-using members of her family.