October
24, 2009
Drug courts are needed; New Jersey shows why
by
Yvonne Smith Segars, New Jersey Public Defender (As New Jersey Public
Defender, Yvonne Smith Segars is the head of the New Jersey Office of
the Public Defender, an agency overseeing the Public Defender offices
throughout state.)
Last Saturday's editorial, "Who needs drug
courts?," asks a simple question. In reality, the answer is far more
complex. Drug courts are certainly not for everybody, and they were
never intended to solve all of the problems plaguing the
criminal-justice system.
In New Jersey, with all major
stakeholders having a voice at the table, the judiciary, law
enforcement, the defense bar, and the addiction-services community
worked diligently to create a successful model. Nonviolent offenders
clinically addicted to alcohol and drugs are given an opportunity to
receive effective treatment.
The New Jersey Office of the Public
Defender represents more than 90 percent of drug court participants,
undermining the claim that drug courts favor a more privileged
socioeconomic group. Of the 8,004 people who, with the advice of lawyers
at their sides, participated in New Jersey's drug-court program, 1,577
successfully graduated. While 61 percent of those entering the program
complete it, the employment rate at the time of graduation is 90 percent
and the percentage of negative drug tests is 96 percent. Within three
years of graduating, only 3 percent return to prison for a new crime,
compared with a 60 percent rate of recidivism for inmates who do not
receive treatment.
Although there are serious concerns raised by
the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers that need
attention, we should not be dismayed nor distracted. Funding should
continue for easily accessible substance-abuse education, prevention,
and treatment. As a community, we all benefit each and every time a
person triumphs over his addiction to alcohol or other drugs and becomes
a law-abiding, tax-paying citizen. Who needs drug court? We all do.