BARIL SAYS HE'D PUSH FOR MORE DRUG COURTS IN STATE

Steve Baril, a candidate for the Republican nomination for attorney
general, said yesterday that he would promote the expansion of drug courts
in Virginia.

Baril, a Richmond lawyer and longtime GOP activist, is opposed by Del.
Robert F. McDonnell of Virginia Beach in a June primary.

Virginia has 28 drug courts, which provide an alternative to prison time
for nonviolent drug addicts. Participants undergo court-supervised
treatment, counseling and drug testing before "graduating" from the program.

"Drug courts demand self-help," he said at a news conference. "They do not
tolerate users, abusers or slackers. I'm here to tell you, drug courts work."

Baril said only 16 percent of drug court graduates commit new felonies,
compared with nearly half of those who do prison time. The annual cost per
offender is about $4,000 in drug courts, he said, while the cost for
traditional incarceration is about $19,000 to $40,000.