FOR ADDICTS, TREATMENT TRUMPS JAIL

It is clear Wisconsin must be tougher on drunken driving and on the
dysfunctional way alcohol saturates our culture. All of our families
have been wrenched directly or indirectly by these problems. But
rather than demanding prison time to appear tough, we need to be smart
on crime: Give judges a well-equipped toolbox to set up an array of
disciplines and supports that can result in real change by offenders.

Drunken driving and other forms of alcohol and drug abuse are only
symptoms. Addiction is the cause. The only humane and effective
solution is to treat this disease.

On a national level, it is a scandal that jails and prisons have
become dumping grounds for the addicted, homeless, mentally ill,
racial minority males and the poor. Alcohol or drug addiction and/or
mental illness are the underlying causes of 80 percent of these
imprisonments. It costs $30,000 a year to imprison just one person.
For a third of that we could save the lives of the addicts and the
their potential victims by providing quality substance abuse
treatment, case management, probation supervision and supportive
services. These are best offered in community-based programs, rather
than separating the addicts from real life; offenders stay on the job,
in families and in the community paying taxes. A strict treatment
program is often harder than a jail term and/or fine.

The treatment toolbox could include halfway houses, extended
treatment, education/job/housing help, mentors, an array of gadgets
such as electronic bracelets that measure alcohol ingestion and other
proven aids.

In comparison, our current sanctions for drunken driving and other
addictive behaviors could be described as "treatment lite" and result
in 75 percent re-offending.

Luckily, we have model programs to learn from, such as the
alcohol-related SSTOP in Winnebago County and Waukesha County's
Alcohol Treatment Court. These successful models deal aggressively and
effectively with drunken driving without automatic jail time. They
have these things in common:

- -They intervene early, after the second or third offense. (Programs
could be set up to have serious engagement with treatment programs
even for the first offense.)

- - They demand accountability. Programs last for at least a year;
participants get treatment and are tested regularly.

- -There are graduated sanctions and graduated rewards. Minor
rule-breaking will set them back; increased misbehavior results in
more serious consequences.

- -They don't use jail or prison except as a last resort. (Jails can
then be saved for those we need to hold separately, such as
perpetrators of violent crimes.)

These programs embody many of the same principles of Eau Claire
County's successful Drug Court.

A significant funding source for such innovations could be the
Community Justice Act proposed by state Reps. Mark Pocan and Scott
Suder. It would significantly increase Treatment Alternatives and
Diversions funds, which go to counties that start effective programs
to treat offenders in community-based settings. To learn more about
this proposal, go to www.wisdomwi.org and click on "Treatment Instead
of Prison."

Our current approach to dealing with addiction and drunken driving is
neither effective nor financially viable. It is opportune that Eau
Claire County has special committees and councils studying how to
better hold offenders accountable while maximizing their
rehabilitation. As citizens, we need to be held responsible for the
creation of effective, systematic and coordinated rehabilitation
options so we all can get on with our lives.

The authors, both of Eau Claire, are co-chairs of the Treatment
Instead of Prison task force of JONAH, a Chippewa Valley interfaith
group that educates, advocates and acts for social change.