Although the prosecutor's job focuses on conviction, prosecutors are continually confronted with decisions about releasing or detaining defendants before trial. In this decisionmaking and in considering the goals of punishment, prosecutors and judges must not only improve their ability to identify offenders with drug problems but also refer more of them to treatment if anything is going to be done to reduce the crime rate. Decisions related to pretrial and postimprisonment release must include an assessment of an offender's risk of resuming drug abuse. Moreover, more must be done to monitor an offender's compliance with drug treatment conditions of release and treatment progress, because criminal behavior stops or lessens during periods of abstinence or greatly reduced consumption. 8 references