DART-CHERRY PROBATION OFFICERS HAVE UNIQUE JOB

Wayne County has more than 40 probation and parole officers, but three who
have unusual jobs are assigned to the Drug and Alcohol Treatment center at
Cherry Hospital, the only such facility in the state. Steve Roman, Matt
Winslow and Lisa Vail supervise up to 300 offenders at any one time and may
see more than 1,000 during the year. "The people who come here are
desperate," Roman said. "They are very sick." For the officers' service, the
American Probation-Parole Association has proclaimed this as Probation,
Parole and Community Supervision Officers' Week. At the same time, Gov. Mike
Easley also issued a similar proclamation.

Stephanie Rose, the chief probation and parole officer at DART-Cherry,
said the offenders have drug and alcohol addiction problems. Many have
not been incarcerated but have been put on probation. They have been
assigned to her agency to ease the overcrowding of state prisons.

The offenders are ordered by a judge to DART-Cherry and then assessed
by a mental health professional before being admitted to either a
28-day or 90-day program.

Ms. Rose explained that there were two parts of the program --
treatment and the "muscle" that her officers provide to keep the
offenders in line. "Without the officers, the program would not be
successful," Ms. Rose said. "Someone has to be here."

If a defendant does walk off, then the officer would have to get a
warrant for his arrest. Once arrested, the defendant would get a
hearing in front of a judge who would determine his fate.

The offenders are not locked up, but they are kept in a dormitory. The
accommodations are not luxurious, with 10 people sleeping in a room.
They can watch television only for short periods at night or on
weekends. Visits by family members on weekends are encouraged, the
officers said. The probationers have a very structured day, starting
at 5:30 a.m. After cleaning the site and breakfast, they have classes
from 7:15 a.m. to 8 p.m. One class is the cognitive behavior
intervention program -- called "thinking for a change" -- on how to
deal with anger. They also can earn a high school diploma. They must
undergo random drug tests and warrant-less searches. At the end of
each session, a graduation is held at Wayne Community College. But
graduation does not end the offenders' involvement with the probation
system. They receive an after-care program of meeting with mental
health providers, getting a high school diploma and attending
Alcoholic Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous meetings.

Ms. Rose said she did not know the recidivism rate for those who
return to drugs and alcohol. She said that once an offender leaves the
program, he is returned to a field probation officer.

What makes the officers' jobs rewarding are phone calls and even
e-mails from previous defendants.

"Definitely, it's working," Roman said of the treatment program. "A
guy had left the program two-and-a-half years ago and called me to let
me know how he was doing. That's real encouraging, even if they
messed up and then got back on track. We encourage them. It's working."