COMMENTARY

By Barbara-Ann Keller

In the late 1980s, drug courts were developed in response to the costly and time-consuming approach to dealing with nonviolent, substance-abusing offenders who were overwhelming the criminal justice system.

In contrast to the traditional "revolving door" approach, drug courts provide an effective solution to drug and drug-related crime through the innovative use of comprehensive supervision, drug testing, judicial monitoring and sanctions and incentives.

Within the state of Hawai'i, drug court programs can be found on the islands of Hawai'i, Kaua'i, Maui, Moloka'i and O'ahu. A variety of drug court programs are available for those residing on those islands, including adults within the criminal court system, and adults and juveniles through the family court system.

These programs are unique and sensitive to the cultural population of each of the islands while meeting the components of drug court programs nationwide. The design and structure of drug court programs are developed at the local level, reflecting the unique strengths, circumstances and capacities of each community.

In the interest of public safety and the overall well-being of our communities, when addressing those who are not only drug-addicted but also criminal offenders, the goal not only becomes to build a drug-free lifestyle but also to end their criminal behavior. The question then becomes, will these criminal offenders commit fewer crimes after being incarcerated or receiving treatment?

Even during brief exposures to treatment, almost all addicts will use fewer drugs and commit less crime than they would have otherwise. The length of time an individual spends in treatment is also a reliable predictor of his or her post-treatment performance. Most drug court programs are a minimum of one year long, which has been found to be the minimum effective duration of treatment.

Nationwide, drug court recidivism rates — though they may differ due to the types of programs, levels of client addiction, and urban or rural locales — all demonstrate significant reductions in criminal recidivism over comparison groups drawn from similar arrestees adjudicated in a "business as usual" fashion.

But are drug court programs cost-effective?

In times of growing costs and lowered budgets, this is of utmost concern. The average annual cost of incarceration is $20,000. The highest estimated annual cost per defendant for treatment services within drug courts is $3,500 — less than one-fifth of that amount.

Drug court programs within the state of Hawai'i have not had a cost analysis conducted as of yet, but cost analyses throughout the nation on drug courts are staggering. The New York State drug court system saved $254 million in prison-related expenses by diverting 18,000 nonviolent drug offenders into drug courts instead of prison. In Dallas, for every dollar spent on drug court, $9.43 in tax dollar savings was realized over a 40-month period.

While no one approach is foolproof, the drug court approach has been found most definitely to work and be a cost-effective means to address drug addiction and criminal behavior within the criminal offender population.

Barbara-Ann Keller is a member of the Hawai'i Advisory Commission on Drug Abuse and Controlled Substances. May is National Drug Court Month designed to increase awareness and support for the program.