DRUG COURT

A second chance to redeem lives while sparing community
expense

Just one in 11 Big Island Drug Court graduates has been convicted of a
new offense since the statistically successful program started eight
years ago.

With a recidivism rate of less than 9 percent through February, the
rural drug court falls well below the federal government's National
Institute of Justice's 17 percent to 26 percent average recidivism
rate for drug court program graduates. Without treatment, according to
the study, half of those sentenced to traditional jail or prison
followed by probation will be convicted of a subsequent crime.

"Traditional treatment of drug addicts or punishing drug addicts for
criminal offenses was not working," said 3rd Circuit Court Chief Judge
Ronald Ibarra. "This is often the last chance these people have before
they go to prison. If someone can make the adjustment and turn their
life around, they can become a contributing member of society, whereas
if sentenced to jail, they likely wouldn't have had that chance."

Since 2003, the Big Island Drug Court has accepted 227 into the
treatment program with 113 of those clients successfully completing
it. Thirty-seven clients were terminated for noncompliance and the
remainder dropped out of the program, according to data provided by
Big Island Drug Court Administrator Warren Kitaoka.

Just 10 have been convicted of another crime since graduating, with
the majority of those convictions stemming from drug use or possession.

For T. Miller, a drug court client since October 2008, drug court
offers those who've tried traditional probation but failed a second
chance at improving their lives. Like many clients, he dabbled in
alcohol and marijuana while in high school and eventually tried
crystal methamphetamine and cocaine before realizing he was "sick and
tired of being sick and tired from the drugs."

"There is too much freedom (with regular probation). Sometimes people
just need a one-on-one relationship with the probation officer and
having the ability to speak with the judge directly," said Miller, who
noted he has been clean since June 2008. "Drug courts are a necessity
in the community for those who are willing to take the steps to
change. It's a program of recovery and they want to see you do well
and succeed. They give you the tools you need to get back to a normal
life."

A 'second' chance

The program isn't for first-time drug offenders, but rather nonviolent
offenders who were convicted of a second drug-related offense while on
probation from a previous conviction. First-time offenders need a
chance to succeed on their own before taxpayer money is spent treating
a client of the drug court, Ibarra said.

Drug courts trace their roots to a 1989 experiment by Florida's Dade
County Circuit Court to reduce recidivism rates among drug abusers
through a judge-monitored, intensive, community-based treatment,
rehabilitation and supervision program for felony drug convicts.

Hawaii's first drug court was established on Oahu in 1996 and today
the state boasts drug court programs on Oahu, Hawaii, Maui and Kauai.

With criminal cases involving crystal methamphetamine, a highly
addictive concoction of cold medicine, drain cleaner and other toxic
chemicals, skyrocketing in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Ibarra said
he began to push for the program in 2002. He secured a federal grant
to train East and West Hawaii teams to institute the program in Hawaii
County, and the program accepted its first clients in 2003.

"We had a lot of drug problems on the Big Island. I had never seen
anything as harmful as crystal meth," Ibarra said. "Ice" and marijuana
remain the drugs of choice for clients, added Kitaoka.

Drug court clients apply for acceptance to the minimum 12-month
treatment program after being referred by a judge during sentencing,
Kitaoka said. Most clients spend about two years in the program,
followed by three years unsupervised probation, to complete the program.

Graduating drug court doesn't mean a client's criminal record is
cleared unless their plea included a deferral, he added.

Clients initially meet weekly with the judge, but as they progress
through the program's three phases, the time between the one-on-one
meetings is extended. However, a client is always subject to intense
supervision and reporting, comprehensive drug treatment, frequent drug
testing and immediate punishment for any violation.

Every aspect of a client's life from relationships, school and work
performance to financial management, hobbies and recreation is
addressed during treatment, Ibarra said, explaining that drug
addiction cannot be treated unless the whole person is treated.

"If you're going to B.S. and lie, it's not for you," said client
Miller. "You have to be willing to say you don't know how to help
(yourself) and be willing to change."

Should a drug court client break the court's rules, Ibarra is informed
and quickly imposes a sanction that can include jail, community
service or just writing an essay.

"An immediate punishment is the most effective one," Ibarra said. In
traditional probation, misconduct is often not punished or punished
long after the crime because cases take time to move through the
judicial system.

Depending upon the severity of the infraction, such as not checking in
with a probation officer, testing positive for drugs or alcohol, or
leaving the island without permission, sanctions can result in a jail
sentence from 24 hours to six months.

Termination from the program, whether for noncompliance or another
conviction, is determined on a case-by-case basis and always results
in prison time.

"It's like raising kids or teaching school -- one day, hopefully, they
will see all of this was in their interest," Ibarra said and laughed.

Kicking habits, cutting costs

Drug courts save taxpayer dollars versus incarceration, both Ibarra
and Kitaoka said.

Incarcerating one person costs taxpayers about $139 per day, or
$50,735 each year. Treating a drug court client costs just $8.77 per
day, or $3,201 a year -- equating to a savings of more than $47,500
for each of the program's 108 current clients, Kitaoka said.

The Big Island's adult and juvenile drug courts received about
$890,650 of the judiciary's $4.7 million budgeted for drug court
programs statewide in fiscal 2009-10, according to statistics provided
by the state Judiciary.

However, the Big Island Drug Court's budget will fall 20 percent to
$711,486 in fiscal 2010-11 because of cuts intended to help the state
curb a projected $1 billion-plus budget deficit. Ibarra acknowledged
the budget issue, however, he said the program will strive to maintain
services to clients.

"It would be a shame if they even considered getting rid of the
program. It's saving lives," Miller said. "If all of those drug
addicts went to prison, they still (would be) drug addicts when they
come out."

There are also savings that can't be estimated against the cost of
incarceration that Ibarra said are important to the community.

As clients move through treatment, they begin working and paying
taxes, they secure private health insurance, provide for themselves
and pay back fines and restitution owed to victims and state, Ibarra
said. Thus far in fiscal 2009-10, clients have paid more than $250,000
in fines and restitution, Kitaoka said.

Further, social costs such as births of drug-addicted children,
domestic violence and broken families are reduced, Ibarra added.

For 20-year-old K. Burke, drug court provides those people nearly
everybody has given up on a second chance to redeem themselves by
repairing their own lives to be productive members of society. She
said her life was good until her parents divorced and she began living
with her father and his live-in girlfriend, who introduced her to
alcohol, marijuana and other drugs.

"I'm back to being a normal person. I've never been so happy," said
Burke, who will give birth to her first child in May. "I've been given
a second chance at a whole new life. If I never came here, I wouldn't
have anything today. God only knows where I'd be."