U.S. COURTS FOR ADDICTS ARE WORKING

Drug courts are being touted as a possible solution to Vancouver's
drug-addiction problem.

"It has a potential to work, if the emphasis is on treatment and the
resources are there," Simon Fraser University criminology professor Neil
Boyd says. "It's a hell of a lot better than just putting people with drug
abuse problems in jail."

The drug court movement is new to Canada -- Vancouver city council is
studying the idea -- but it has been sweeping the United States.

Drug courts deal with addicts who run afoul of the law, not traffickers.

According to the U.S. justice department, drug courts are a resounding
success.

The United States launched a massive police and prison offensive in the
mid-'80s to fight the emergence of crack cocaine.

"The result was a revolving door, in which drug offenders cycled in and out
of the justice system," the department says in a background paper.

The justice system threatened to collapse under the sheer numbers of
druggies busted and jailed.

Few, if any, addicts received treatment.

The key to the drug court system is to get addicts into court quickly and
offer them an alternative: A long jail sentence, or treatment.

Detox and treatment is followed by a long term of probation with a game plan
for the future and regular drug testing.

Studies show that about 70 per cent of those referred stayed in the
programs, with more than half graduating. Less than 10 per cent of graduates
are arrested again for drug use.

The program costs between $1,200 and $3,000 US for each person, compared to
about $5,000 for a jail term.

As of June 1, 1998, there were more than 450 drug courts in the United
States.

Checked-by: Rolf Ernst