DRUG COURT GRADS SHARE EXPERIENCES WITH LEAGUE

'Treatment makes a big difference,' judge says

Two 4th District Drug Court graduates are taking their experiences from a
life of drug addiction and turning them into lessons for others.

Sheena Ellis and Jeff Dunn, drug court participants, told the Greenwood
Voters League how the Drug Court helped them get back on the right path.

"I have learned from them as much as they have learned from me. Treatment
makes a big difference," said Circuit Court Judge Betty Sanders of
Greenwood, who invited Ellis and Dunn to speak to the league.

Ellis, 43, of Greenwood, a former crack addict, said she gives thanks to God
for Sanders having the courage two years ago to "hit the hood" to find her
and save her from a life of destruction.

She said she is evidence that the Drug Court does work.

Dunn, 41, of Greenwood, a former constable in Leflore County, said his drug
addiction separated him from his family and caused him to lose a business he
had owned for 10 years.

Dunn, a former cocaine addict, said he chose Drug Court rather than serving
time.

"It's not just a slap on the wrist," he said. "You have rules and
regulations. But I can say that the rules that they have have made me a
better person and made my recovery a lot easier."

Drug Court participants are screened for drugs three times a week and must
go before a circuit court judge once a week. Participants must also attend
weekly meetings, which Ellis and Dunn continue to attend as a part of their
recovery.

Ellis and Dunn allowed their drug use to drive their families and loved ones
away. Since becoming clean and sober, the two now have their families back
in their lives.

Sanders said not only are the two graduates clean and sober, they have taken
it upon themselves to help others and show them the way.

"They've come back to speak the language that you and I don't know or
understand and say to them, 'Look at me. I did it. You can do it,'" she
said.

Sanders, along with the district attorney's office, helped initiate the
18-month rehabilitation program, which covers Leflore, Sunflower and
Washington counties.

According to Sanders, Drug Court emphasizes treatment as an alternative to
imprisonment for drug-related, non-violent offenders.

Those eligible for drug court must be addicted or hooked on drugs, she said.

Sanders said every county in the state of Mississippi has a Drug Court.

Tony Jones of Greenville, 4th Circuit Court Drug Court program coordinator,
said the program is often times mistaken for a treatment program. He said,
instead, drug court is a therapeutic program.

"The first step is to get a person into treatment and once finished, bring
them back into the Drug Court program, which is structured to help a person
gain some discipline," he said.

He said once the drugs are removed from the participant's life, "then you
have to work on the other stuff. What Drug Court does, in all areas, is it
teaches a person to be responsible."

Jones, who has been down the road of drug addiction in the past, said it is
easy for him to relate to the common criminal behavior associated with drug
addiction.

"You're looking at people who have been this way a long time," he said. "The
behavior associated with addiction is harder to break than the addiction
itself."

Jones said drug court can help only those who want to help themselves.

"Can drug court help all people? No. It can only help those that want it,"
he said.

He said after a little reality sets in, coincidentally, the Drug Court helps
those that don't want it. "At some point, they see somebody else doing well
and they see that there is a way out," he said.