Acknowledgments Executive Summary Introduction Participant Histories Neighborhood Problems Drug Court Knowledge Experience')" onMouseOut="hidetip()">The Courtroom Experience Commitment to Treatment The Treatment Experience Participant Drug Use Court Responses Participant Recommendations Policy Implications Conclusion References

V. The Courtroom Experience

Since the original formulation of the drug court model in Miami, drug court proponents have argued that the courtroom itself serves as an important therapeutic vehicle, dubbed by Miami’s Deputy Public Defender David Weed the “theatre in the square.” In contrast to the traditional courtroom, the drug court courtroom is marked by nonadversarial, informal proceedings with direct interaction between judge and participant. A typical courtroom session includes the judge and courtroom team acting to encourage, reward, reprimand, or sanction participants depending on their progress in the treatment program. Given the central importance of the courtroom in the drug court model, focus group participants were asked to describe the courtroom experience in a number of ways. A consistent theme in participant responses across sites is that appearing in the drug court courtroom is a critical experience, just as the drug court model posits.

Click here for excerpts of comments from focus group participants.

What is the best part of going to drug court?

Focus group participants in the different sites were nearly unanimous in stating that receiving some form of encouragement in court was the best part of the courtroom experience, particularly in the form of getting another court date and walking out the door. Several indicated that seeing people graduate was the most positive part.

Click here for excerpts of comments from focus group participants.

What is the worst part of going to drug court?

Focus group participants were also asked to identify the worst part of going to the drug court courtroom. Overall fear of sanctions, particularly incarceration, was cited as the main, but not exclusive, “worst part” of going to drug court.

Click here for excerpts of comments from focus group participants.

How important is the judge in drug court? Couldn’t you succeed in treatment without a judge?

The drug court model posits that the central role and availability of the judge to participants in the treatment process provides an irreplaceable element that differentiates the drug court approach from other treatment approaches for the criminal justice population. When asked to discuss the role of the drug court judge, participants across focus groups and locations agreed generally that the judge’s hands-on role formed one of the most important aspects of their drug court experiences. They did not believe a lesser official, such as a probation officer, could play the same role or have the same effect on their behavior. They also discussed the problems posed by frequent substitution of judges in drug court, comparing the substitute judge to a “substitute teacher” who was “easy to get over on.”

Click here for excerpts of comments from focus group participants.

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An Honest Chance: Perspectives on Drug Courts	April 2002