A COURT OF LAST RESORT

Drug Court Saves Counties Money, Helps Addicts Recover

LUCEDALE - Lisa Kyle has been smoking marijuana for 20 years, but that
all changed in March when she was arrested on a possession charge and
ended up in George County's Drug Court.

Police caught Kyle, 28, with almost two pounds of marijuana, but she
got a break when Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Kathy King Jackson
accepted her in the two-year Drug Court program that started in
November for offenders in George and Greene counties.

If Kyle doesn't follow the rules, she'll end up in the penitentiary,
serving a six-year sentence that currently is suspended.

"The Drug Court program is a blessing for me," she said. "When I first
got into this, I didn't want to stop. I never knew a life without
drugs, but Drug Court introduced it to me."

Kyle is among 24 addicts currently enrolled in the program, which
requires inpatient or outpatient treatment as needed, weekly drug
tests, community service and attendance at least twice a week at
Alcoholics or Narcotics Anonymous meetings.

The offenders also go to Drug Court each Thursday, where the judge
quizzes each offender on their past week's activity. She asks them how
they're doing, what problems they're having and what books they're
reading. The judge requires the offenders to get library cards, read
books and work to get their general education degree. One of the
offenders talks to the group weekly about something they've learned
and want to share with the the other members.

"The main criteria for getting into the program is that you are an
addict," Jackson said. "I don't want people who just don't want to go
to jail. The real point of this program is to make them productive
citizens."

Jackson instituted the first Drug Court in South Mississippi. The
program operates on a one-time grant of $50,000 from Attorney General
Mike Moore's office, $15,000 from the Greene County Board of
Supervisors and $25,000 from the George County Board of
supervisors.

She got the idea after watching how drug courts in Brookhaven and
McComb were working. In September, Harrison County launched its own
Drug Court.

Jackson, senior Circuit Court judge in Jackson, George and Greene
counties, said she watches for any deception by the offenders, a
common trait among addicts. If she catches any of them in a lie, she
either orders them to do more community service, sends them to jail
for 10 days, 12 days, or whatever she determines.

"These people have been living worthless lives," Jackson said.
"They're cons and they've been cons. Part of their life is the
deception and some just get indignant. You are rewarded for telling
the truth."

So far, Jackson and her Drug Court coordinator, Joanne Byrd, are
pleased with the court because it's helping addicts sober up and start
leading productive lives. The Drug Court, Byrd said, also has saved
George County an estimated $30,000 in costs to house their inmate
participants, while Greene County's saving are estimated at $14,000.
The state has saved an additional $133,000 to cover the costs for the
housing of their inmates that are enrolled in Drug Court.

"But it only works for people who want it to work," Kyle said. "You
know, I heard stories about the judge, about how hard she was before I
got here. She's stern, but she's just trying to find a way to stop
people from going to the penitentiary. A lot of us don't need to go to
jail for drugs. It's more about use and abuse than anything else."

Kyle is but one example of how the program is changing the lives of
addicts. She's now working and sober.

"This is the first time I've been sober in my life," she
said.

Drug Court penalties

A strict set of penalties are in place for drug offenders attending Drug Court
in George County:

Failure to appear in court:

No excuse: 7 days in jail.

Legitimate excuse: Punishment determined by the judge.

Third time late for Drug Court:

No excuse: 24 hours in jail.

Legitimate excuse: Punishment determined by the judge.

Losing job:

Your fault: 3 days in jail.

Legitimate excuse: Punishment determined by the judge.

Drug use:

Admission before test: 4-6 days in jail.

Admission after test: 8-12 days in jail.

Should someone challenge the results of a positive drug test, the
urine sample will be shipped to a lab for further analysis. If the
sample remains positive, the Drug Court participant will pay for the
drug test and spend 24-30 days in jail.

Any failure by participants to pay drug court fees or and/or court
costs and fines:

No legitimate excuse: Punishment determined by the
judge.

Legitimate excuse: Punishment determined by the judge.