TREATMENT ALTERNATIVE OFFERED IN DRUG COURT

Officials Work Free to Launch Program

HOPEWELL - Sam Vick Jr., who has struggled with drug addiction for 12
years, wants to stay out of jail and stay sober.

Troy Brinkley, Vick's cousin who has been using drugs for 15 years, wants
to make a fresh start.

Both 30-year-olds are facing multiple drug possession charges in Hopewell's
General District Court. But because they are committed to changing their
lives, they won't be going to trial.

Instead, they are the first two participants in the pilot Drug Court
program for Hopewell and Prince George and Surry counties.

"We appreciate your historic entry into the program," Judge J. Larry Palmer
told the men during the first Drug Court session yesterday morning.

Drug courts, which aim to treat the substance-abuse cause of eligible
offenders' crimes, started in Florida in the late 1980s and are now in use
across the country. Locally, Richmond and Chesterfield County have them,
and Henrico County is starting one.

But the pilot Drug Court program in the 6th Judicial District's general
district court is different.

The judge, the police and probation officers from all three jurisdictions,
the police chiefs and sheriff, the commonwealth's attorneys and the group's
unofficial director are doing the work for free.

This group spent two years researching drug courts, using a federal grant
to pay for seminars and visits to courts in California and Florida, said
Bettina W. Hundley, the Drug Court's unofficial director and the director
of the Riverside Criminal Justice Agency.

But the group's proposal for a grant to start the court was rejected. The
members wanted to start a pilot program now, so they decided to donate
their time, Hundley said.

They still hope to receive local grants to pay for counseling and
treatment, but no one will be drawing salaries. Right now, treatment will
be covered in part by Hundley's office.

Vick and Brinkley might not be going to jail, but Drug Court could be
harder. They will go though drug treatment, training courses and even
parenting courses if necessary, said Anthony Sylvester, the commonwealth's
attorney for Hopewell.

A police officer and a probation officer will be checking on them
regularly, and they will have a curfew. They will appear in court once a
week to meet with the judge and discuss their progress.

"It is about as tight a program you can have without incarceration,"
Sylvester said.

Brinkley and Vick will also be subjected to random drug testing, and if the
results are positive, it will be up to the Drug Court group to determine
the punishment. That could include jail time, but not right from the start.

Vick and Brinkley have both served time at the Riverside Regional Jail, and
neither wants to go back. Vick has been through drug treatment twice before
and stayed sober for short periods, but Brinkley said he has never tried.

"Now that I'm turning 30, it's about time I turned my life around for the
good," said Brinkley, whose birthday was yesterday.

Brinkley's girlfriend, who has been clean for five months after using drugs
for 10 years, is glad to see the court system acknowledge that addicts need
help.

"It's about time they did something to deal with addiction instead of just
putting them in jail," said Amanda Dean. "When they get out of jail,
they're still addicted."

That often leads drug users to commit crimes again, said Hopewell Police
Chief Wayne Cleveland. After spending most of his career doing drug
enforcement, he's tired of seeing the same people get arrested, and Drug
Court can stop that.

"It's not going to solve everything, but it's certainly a heck of a lot
better than what we've been doing until now," Cleveland said.