GETTING OFF DRUGS

New Dallas County court program offers hope

The scared young man arrives at the Dallas County jail. His drug problems
have finally become serious enough to gain the attention of the criminal
justice system.

Busted for the first time for illegal possession, he will have to go
through the entire adjudication process before he can get help for his
addiction. He may have to wait as long as two years after his initial
arrest to get into a substance abuse program.

That is the way it is today. But on Jan. 6, a new Dallas County courts
program will begin that offers real hope for drug offenders who haven't
fallen too far to turn their lives around.

The DIVERT program, which stands for the Dallas Initiative for diVersion
and Expedited Rehabilitation and Treatment, provides a needed
alternative for firsttime, nonviolent defendants with drug problems.

Rather than going to trial, eligible participants will go into a drug
treatment program within two weeks after their arrests.

Counseling, rehabilitation, literacy and job training will all be
available to drug offenders assigned to the DIVERT program. Frequent
drug testing and appearances before Judge John Creuzot, who will preside
over the court program, also will be part of the plan.

Those who complete the 18month program without any setbacks will not be
prosecuted or have felony drug convictions on their records.

"The old system isn't working because when people get out jail, they are
still drug addicts," Judge Creuzot said. "In this program, we're working
with treatment providers to get folks clean and keep them from
committing more crimes."

The project, which has received a $400,000 grant from the Justice
Department, makes sense. There is no valid reason to believe that
incarceration is going to cure a drug addict. Neither is there good
reason to believe that handing jail time to a firsttime drug offender
is going to turn his life around. If anything, it will make it more
difficult for him to find work or assistance.

The Dallas County courts system is to be commended for taking the
initiative to install the DIVERT program. At a time when drug abuse is
becoming epidemic among young people, any project that offers an
opportunity to turn around the trend is worth a try.