SUBSTANCE ABUSERS

Court Plan A Good Idea

Anyone who has had even a remote connection with the agencies that
deal with juvenile problems quickly learns this lesson: Parents who
abuse drugs or alcohol (or both) end up passing their problems along
to their children in some form.

That is why the Tulsa County Juvenile Bureau is planning an intensive
court program to work with the addicted parents of deprived children.
The proposal is a worthwhile idea, and should help alleviate some of
the problems brought on by this social ill.

"Somehow, I don't think the community sees the face of what drugs and
alcohol does to a community," Juvenile Bureau Director Bill Bledsoe
says. "The community needs to know."

Indeed it does. If everyone could ride along with a cop for a day or
two, or spend a couple of afternoons with a child-welfare
investigator, soon all citizens would have some understanding of the
scope of the substance-abuse problem. Children are left to fend for
themselves day after day by these addled parents, often in
environments that literally make veteran investigators weep and gag.

Under the planned program, substance-abusing parents who have been
brought to the attention of juvenile authorities will be directed into
treatment and counseling programs. Weekly hearings will be held to
monitor the parents' progress. Efforts will be made to move this
process along quickly, so that children do not stay in unhealthy
environments longer than necessary. Experts say considerable emotional
damage can be done to small children in such situations in a
relatively short period of time, so expediting this process is important.

One way or another, these parents must be dealt with. This plan is
another in a series of criminal justice system efforts aimed in the
right direction.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry