CARR HOPES DRUG COURT WILL GIVE ADDICTS HOPE

A drug court - the first of its kind in the country - is to start
operating on Monday, with organisers promising it will slash crime and
offer solutions to the cycle of addiction.

The court, headed by Justice Gay Murrell, will deal solely with drug
crimes, now costing NSW hundreds of millions of dollars in
house-breaking offences alone.

Details of the new court, to be announced today, will map out a strict
monitoring program for dealing with addicts.

The Premier, Mr Carr, said last night that he hoped the court would
help tackle the problem of drug addiction.

"If we are going to beat this terrible tendency in our society, for
people to use a drug as poisonous and addictive as heroin, we must
work together as a community," he said.

Mr Carr has pledged $12 million for the court, and $5 million in
linked rehabilitation services and promised to attack the problem on
all levels - through schools, police action, rehabilitation and education.

The court will punish addicts who commit crimes, but sentences can be
shortened, even suspended, for appropriate candidates, according to
organisers.

Measures include regular appearances before Justice Murrell, random
urine tests, mandatory counselling, rehabilitation and
detoxification.

The trial is attracting interest from other States and countries, with
Ireland and Canada keen to follow suit.

The scheme is based on a similar program in the US, where the first
drug court started in Miami in 1989. Now there are 500, and some areas
are reporting a 50 per cent cut in crime.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr Nicholas Cowdery, QC, and the
NSW Law Society are backing the new program. They say it offers new
solutions for the nation's 200,000 drug users - of which an estimated
62,000 are in NSW.

"The new court will have powers that will enable it to adopt a more
direct and personal role in the management of individual offenders,"
said Mr Cowdery, who is assigning a senior lawyer from his office, Ms
Johanna Pheils, to the court.

"The hope is to break the tragic cycle of addiction, which means we
reduce criminal behaviour by addicts trying to get money to feed their
habit. That will cut down on house-breaking, muggings and armed hold-ups."

He also stressed the importance of support programs for those before
the court.

One of the key movers behind the court, Sydney barrister Mr Ross
Goodridge, said it would offer a "stick and carrot" approach to drug
addicts.

Offenders would be offered inducements, including a reduction in their
sentence, if they would take part in the court's program for at least
one year, to help them become drug-free.

"I think we should all do what we can," Mr Goodridge said. "I've got a
son of my own, who is fine. But I want him to grow up in a society
which tackles social problems such as addiction."