REVEALED: DRUG COURT SCHEME A FAILURE

A CENTRAL plank of the Scottish Executive's war against drugs, the
introduction of American-style courts to deal with offenders, can today be
revealed as a failure.

The courts are designed to offer a structured programme of rehabilitation
to offending addicts, but The Scotsman has been told by court staff that:

Six out of ten addicts are not even turning up;

Offenders treat the scheme as a "laughing stock" and a "soft option";

The courts are short-staffed with an enormous workload and low morale.

Opposition politicians said criminals were "cocking a snook" at the
Executive's flagship policy.

One clerk attached to the drugs court programme at Glasgow Sheriff Court
said addicts were taking advantage of a more tolerant system.

The clerk added: "To put it plainly, the drugs court in Glasgow is being
abused by drug addicts. Many of them fail to make court dates or attend
probation and social work hearings in conjunction with the courts.

"From my experience, around 60 per cent of individuals going through the
courts will fail to appear. If these individuals were called to Sheriff
Court with the threat of jail over their heads, they would think twice
about failing to turn up."

The source added: "The addicts are playing the system and see drugs courts
as a soft option. Most of them have been through the traditional court
system and know drugs courts are based around leniency and understanding;
they are stretching the court's patience to the limit. I know the majority
of police officers at the Sheriff Court are appalled at the set-up."

The courts have been introduced in Glasgow and Glenrothes in an attempt to
concentrate on rehabilitation, not punishment, as the centrepiece of the
fight against drugs in Scotland. They are held in non-adversarial
courtrooms, offering coercive but supportive treatment for addict offenders.

Supporters of the scheme - who expect it to begin in other parts of
Scotland this year - believe drug courts work, claiming addicts must
undergo rigorous testing and treatment, and can be sent back to court for
sentencing if they fail to attend rehabilitation programmes or continue to
take drugs.

A recent report into drug courts by Stirling University highlighted severe
problems in dealing with the workload. It said: "Frustration, even anger,
was expressed at staffing levels, which had increased workloads to an
extraordinary degree."

The report quoted a senior staff member as saying: "We don't have the ..
staff to deal with the wider issues because we are in crisis, we've been in
crisis for six months. We don't have enough social workers and we don't
nearly have enough addiction workers."

One of the two sheriffs interviewed by researchers said: "I think their
ability to cope is the most important thing because unless they're able to
provide reports on time, unless they are able to do their job properly, we'
re kind of pointless."

Annabel Goldie, the Tories' justice spokeswoman, said: "We've long argued
drug addicts need to be offered two stark choices: immediate rehabilitation
or the full force of the law. Sadly, neither is happening and too many
criminals are cocking a snook at the system. These figures show the drug
courts are seen as a 'get out of jail free' card by far too many. This
trial is in tatters and it's time to stop trying out more schemes and get
on with action."

A Scottish Executive spokeswoman denied 60 per cent of addicts failed to
turn up for hearings or rehabilitation programmes, but couldn't provide
precise figures. She said: "Any offender who fails to turn up for a hearing
is in breach of his or her order. The drug court treats 'no shows' very
seriously and breaches of orders, more often than not, result in the
offender being sent to prison.

"The purpose of piloting drug courts [and youth courts] is to develop a
full range of flexible measures to tackle modern problems of drugs and
youth crime. Evaluation of the drug courts to date indicates that the pilot
has been very successful."