NOVEL IDEA? NOT IN CONNECTICUT

Arizona's commitment to offering nonviolent drug offenders treatment rather
than jail is reaping praise and saving that state money. It costs about $16
a day to pay for intensive supervision of an addict on probation. If the
same person were in prison, the price tag would be $50 a day. So far,
Arizona has saved $2.5 million. Even better, the program seems to be
reducing the number of addicts. A year into it, 77.5 percent of
participants have tested free of drugs, more than those on probation in
most other states.

But Arizona's initiative - billed as the first of its kind in the nation -
is old news in Connecticut. Alternate incarceration programs have been in
place here for a decade. Drug courts are in full swing in Bridgeport and
Waterbury. There is a juvenile drug court in Hartford. Nonviolent offenders
arrested for crimes pertaining to a personal drug habit are eligible to
apply for probation and treatment under these programs.

Robyn Oliver, program manager for alternative sanctions, said Connecticut
is ahead of most states in offering a full spectrum of treatment - from
detoxification to post-treatment supervision - to nonviolent offenders who
qualify. Also in place is a vast network of sentencing alternatives, such
as day prison programs, transitional housing, specialty programs for women
with kids, for Latinos and for other groups. Any of these programs could
also include drug treatment. About 5,000 people participate in a prison
alternative program at any given time.

This makes practical and philosophical sense. It costs nearly $70 a day to
house and feed a prisoner in Connecticut. Besides being far less costly,
treatment reduces the motivation to commit crimes. At its best, it gives
people a second chance to live productive lives.

Connecticut's prison population has doubled in 10 years, numbering more
than 15,000. The Department of Correction budget has nearly quadrupled.
Drugs are involved in the majority of crimes. Sale of drugs is the No. 1
offense of Connecticut inmates. This profile mirrors the nation's.

Like too many other states, we spend more on correction than on higher
education. With a trend toward treatment, this imbalance has stabilized.

Barry McCaffrey, the nation's drug czar, was in Hartford recently to tout
anti-drug measures such as drug courts, especially for juveniles. He said
the early success of such programs has been attributed to the potent
combination of criminal justice and treatment systems acting in concert.
High expectations, rigid accountability and supportive personnel were cited
as contributing factors to the high incidence of recovery.

Mr. McCaffrey's visit to Connecticut was intended to promote his sensible
national agenda - making treatment available to reduce the prison population.

Apparently, he was preaching to the choir.