COMMUNITY OFFENDER PROGRAM WORKS, EX-ADDICT SAYS

Oklahoma City (AP) -- A program that treats nonviolent drug offenders
without putting them in jail is working, say police and other officials who
point to statistics and court records. They also point to people such as
Ernest Hamilton, 66, who stopped his cocaine habit more than four years ago.

"I think back to where I came from," said Hamilton, an Owasso retiree. "So
much was given to me, I want to give it back."

He spoke at this week's drug court steering committee and said he could
have ended his addiction sooner if he had believed in the program when he
started.

Hamilton, who became an addict at 52, said he mistakenly believed he could
quit cocaine at will. It took two trips to jail to convince him he was wrong.

"I started hustling drugs, lying to my family, lying to my friends," he
said. "It was a never-ending cycle."

Since quitting, Hamilton says he volunteers with senior citizens and
returns to drug court meetings to encourage others.

The Oklahoma County Drug Court is one of dozens of such programs across the
country. Oklahoma City police Sgt. Vanessa Price, who checks drug court
participants' progress with surprise visits, said the program has several
benefits.

Price said 90 drug offenders have graduated from the local drug court since
its founding in 1998. Of those, she said, only three have been rearrested.

Price said taxpayers would have paid more than $1.3 million for each year
the 87 successful graduates might have been in jail. With an average jail
sentence of five years, the savings for the state could be equated to about
$6.5 million, she said.

Drug court workers handle 118 offenders. The program has treated 375 since
it began.