YOUTH SERVICE BUREAU OFFERS DRUG COURTS

Three teen-agers just graduated from a year-long program at the Youth
Service Bureau. The program stopped their drug abuse, dropped their drug
charges and gave them the skills, resources and support of a system they'll
need to stay clean. They are the first drug court graduates at the Youth
Service Bureau, and program Director Marie Smith said more are on the way.
The Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program is one of several operated
by the bureau.

The kids who are coming through this program had been abusing marijuana,
crack, Xanax, Ecstasy, methamphetamine, alcohol, cocaine, opioids, Valium,
gasoline, Special K, Freon, cold pills and whip cream canisters.

Sometimes, they're as young as 10 or 11, Executive Director Jeanne Voorhees
said. ADAPT includes adolescent group therapy, multi-family group, drug
screens and family counseling, said Smith, who is also a licensed clinical
social worker. Clients are usually between the ages of 12 and 17 and live in
Tangipahoa, St. Helena or Livingston parishes, Smith said. They also meet
the criteria of having a substance abuse disorder. The ADAPT program isn't
new, Voorhees said. It's been in place for three years.

However, the drug court component is fairly new; it is only about a year
old. Referrals come from parents, the Families in Need of Services program,
the sheriff's office, office of children's services, schools, the probation
office, hospitals and the district attorney's office, she said. Two separate
drug courts will soon be available to clients, she said. The drug court
program in place at the bureau now is under Judge Grace Gasaway and the 7th
Ward City Court. It has been open since October but is expected to be fully
operational in the fall. Currently, 15 teens are participating. In February,
the 21st Judicial District Court YSB drug court will begin accepting its
first clients, who will come from the rural areas in the Florida Parishes,
Voorhees said. The therapist was hired Thursday, Smith said, and Voorhees
Funding for drug courts comes through the Supreme Court, she said. The
drug courts are contracted with the YSB to provide treatment. "Drug courts
are the balance between the carrot and the stick," Voorhees said. "We
provide the carrot, and the court provides the stick." Clients are given two
options.

They can voluntarily cooperate in the drug court ADAPT program at the YSB,
and if they're successful, she said, they will not be prosecuted for their
drug charges.

Or, they can go before the judge for their criminal offense and be
sentenced. It's a very serious program that has serious requirements,
Voorhees said. Each client faces a long-term commitment that is a
combination of education, group support and individual and family therapy,
she said. The teens have to stay clean, and there are random drug tests to
make certain they are. For three months, there's an intensive treatment
program, two times a week, two hours at a time, and therapy varies from
group, individual and family, Smith said. Kids are educated about drugs and
alcohol, and the effects they have on the body. They'll go to a prevention
group that teaches how to recognize and prevent triggers. Therapy is
important because personal issues need to be addressed.

In most cases, people don't get involved in drugs unless there's a problem
pushing it, Voorhees said. The problem can be school, family, adolescent
hormones, or any number of things. Families are an important part of the
drug court package, she said. For the next six months, just one hour a week
is spent in treatment, which drops to only individual or group therapies,
and after that, kids come in only if they need to, Smith said. At drug
court's level three, teens still have a case manager who checks on them at
school and at home with parents and family.

Random drug tests can continue, if it is necessary.