NCJ Number
108492
Date Published
1987
Length
0 pages
Annotation
Presenters discuss the role of treatment in sentencing, the selection of offenders for treatment, and the court's monitoring of offender treatment.
Abstract
Robert Timmins, program director of the Foundation for Research and Education in Drug Abuse, Inc., recounts his experience in being rehabilitated as an offender through a drug treatment program. He suggests a lengthy period of drug treatment characterized by opportunity and sanctions for failure to respond to treatment, with total abstinence being the goal. He suggests that the criminal justice system be selective regarding who receives treatment, with offender motivation to respond to treatment being a key factor. Such an assessment should be performed by a professional who understands the nature of addiction. Rusty Burress, a Federal probation officer, also argues for selectivity in treatment, based on concern for public protection, the law, and the offender. Some issues raised are whether treatment should be in lieu of or in addition to other sanctions, whether a person who recidivates after receiving treatment should again receive treatment as part of the sentence, and what sanctions should be used against offenders who fail in treatment programs. David Horowitz, superior court judge in California, advises that judges should not become involved in treatment offender matching or the selection of specific treatment programs for offenders. This should be left to the probation department. He recommends that the court receive regular reports on offender progress in treatment.