EX-CON EXPERIMENTS WITH SOBRIETY

GREENSBORO -- It started off with wine. Robert Carr used to drink it with
his high school buddies at a street corner in eastern Greensboro.

Then he moved on to hard liquor.

Then in the Army, a soldier from New Jersey introduced him to marijuana.
"Then I went to Vietnam," said Carr, 60, who recently celebrated his
birthday sober, something he hasn't done in more than 40 years. "Over there
was opium. Whatever I could get my hands on. Sniffed Aqua Velva
(after-shave lotion). I can't remember how I got introduced to cocaine."
Carr also got into trouble with the law, robbing a liquor store and
breaking into homes to feed his drug habit.

He was arrested again earlier this year on drug charges.

But this time, instead of going back to jail, Carr was offered something
else. He was given a chance to participate in Guilford County's fledgling
drug treatment court.

"At first I was going to use the system," said Carr, a cafeteria worker in
Greensboro. "I was going to go through this to get the charge off of me and
then go back and start smoking cocaine."

Carr had a change of heart.

"They were so nice to me I just decided to do the right thing," Carr said.
"I'm benefiting from it. It's just amazing."

Carr, who is married, said he has been sober for two months, the longest
span of time he can remember. He finally has money in his pocket. He's not
tired all the time. He feels better.

"I get up in the morning wanting to go to work," he said. "It's just a
different world."

Drug treatment court officials said Carr is one example of several success
stories so far since the program opened its doors at the courthouse in
Greensboro in December. But there's also been some failures.

"We have a good number of people that are holding on and meeting
expectations," Guilford County District Court Judge Patrice Hinnant said.
"Admittedly we have had some that have not measured up. It is tough."

Under the 12- to 18-month program, participants enter plea bargains and
undergo intensive counseling, meet with probation officers, take drug tests
and attend community support groups. They also meet with a judge every
other week and pay $500 in weekly payments of $10.

In return, they avoid jail. Charges are also dropped if they succeed.
Organizers plan to have more than 40 participants by the end of this year
and more than 100 participants by the end of 2005.

So far, 17 people have successfully participated in the program, said
Wheaton Pike, drug court administrator for Guilford County.

Two participants have been jailed for not complying with the terms of the
program, Pike said. Four others dropped out of the program within two weeks
of starting.

"Things are going pretty much like we expected," Pike said.

The program began after the Justice Department in 2002 awarded Guilford
County $499,914 under a three-year grant for a drug treatment court.
Guilford has agreed to contribute the equivalent of $201,466 in matching
funds in the form of staffing, supplies and technical support.

Carr said he's taking things slow these days.

"One day at a time," he said. "That's the only thing I can do."