Cooperation Is Key to Success of Madison County Drug Court

• NCJ Number: 176003
• Journal: Compiler Volume: 17 Issue: 3 Dated: January 1998 Pages: 10-13
• Author(s): D Dighton
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 4 pages
• Sale Source: NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article describes the components, effectiveness, and key to success for the Madison County (Illinois) drug court.

Abstract

Drug-court participants are selected by the county probation department through a screening process that involves a substance abuse assessment. The participants must meet specific criteria, and their criminal charges must be on a list of offenses approved for the program by the State's attorney. Once they are accepted for the program, the clients enter a three-phase treatment program that typically requires 1 to 2 years to complete. The first phase is the most intense and generally lasts 2 to 3 months. During this period, the client must participate in a structured treatment program that includes individual and group therapy. The client must submit to regular drug tests and appear before the judge about every 2 weeks for a progress report. After fulfilling the requirements of Phase I, the clients move to Phase II for several more months, when the treatment program is less intense, drug tests are less frequent, and court appearances are fewer. Finally, during Phase III, the client attends treatment once a week and appears in court about every 6 weeks. Clients who stay "clean" for the treatment period, get a job or attend school, and otherwise stay out of trouble, graduate from the program. Twenty-six clients have gotten jobs and graduated from the program since it began in March 1996. None of the graduates have returned to court. An integral part of the drug court's success is the cooperation among the various agencies involved. Approximately every 2 weeks, the drug court judge and the drug court coordinator meet with the case workers, the assistant State's attorney, the assistant public defender, and clinical workers. They discuss how the program is working and how it can be improved. They are assisted through an evaluation of the program by Chestnut Health Systems.