The Drug Court Movement.

Series: NIJ Update
Published: September 1995
3 pages
5,420 bytes

The drug court movement began in the 1980's in
response to the growing number of drug-related
court cases. Traditional law enforcement and
corrections policies alone were not having the
impact on drug supply and demand that the
proponents of the "War Against Drugs" had hoped. As
a result, in the summer of 1989, an administrative
order from the chief judge of Florida's 11th
judicial circuit set the first drug court in
motion. A new report of the National Institute of
Justice and the State Justice Institute, Justice
and Treatment Innovation: The Drug Court Movement,
examines the Drug Court Movement and the findings
of the First National Drug Court Conference.

A new way of doing things

The drug court approach departed from the
traditional court approach by systematically
bringing drug treatment to the criminal justice
population entering the court system.
Traditionally, the court had referred selected
offenders "out" to treatment as a condition of
probation. In the drug court, treatment is anchored
in the authority of the judge who holds the
defendant or offender personally and publicly
accountable for treatment progress.
In the Miami drug court, the judge works with the
prosecutor, defender, and drug treatment
specialists as a team to select the appropriate
treatment approach, monitor progress in the
courtroom, and help overcome problems (for example,
housing and employment) that may hinder treatment
progress. Although controversial, the approach
adopted in Miami has influenced officials to
implement drug courts in more than 20 other
jurisdictions nationwide between 1991 and 1993.

Core elements of a drug court

One of the most striking characteristics of the
expansion in drug court programs has been the
diversity in court structure, treatment programs,
and target populations. One of the principal aims
of the First National Drug Court Conference, held
in Miami in December 1993, was to identify core
elements of a drug court. More than 400 judges,
prosecutors, defense lawyers, and drug treatment
specialists designated the following elements as
crucial to the success of a drug court:

o  Judicial commitment and leadership.

o  Collaboration among criminal justice agencies,
courts, treatment agencies, and community
organizations.

o  Education and training programs for judges,
prosecutors, defenders, and other criminal justice
practitioners in substance abuse, addictive
behaviors, and treatment approaches.

o  Education and training programs for treatment
providers and public health officials in criminal
justice concerns and procedures.

o  A specifically defined target population that
considers both drug involvement and public safety
risk.

o  A custom-designed treatment program that
addresses the specific treatment needs of the
court's targeted population.

o  Integrated information management that links the
court with criminal justice and treatment agencies
and provides adequate supervision for
defendants/offenders.

o  Funding sources for drug court startup and
maintenance.

o  A detailed, comprehensive implementation plan
that includes scheduled milestones and orientation
and training for everyone involved.

o  An evaluation strategy that defines desired
outcomes, identifies the types of information
required to measure those outcomes, and defines a
timetable for the reporting and analysis of those
outcomes.

Future needs

In 1994, Federal legislation was enacted to support
the growing local and State interest in drug
courts. The Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act authorizes support for local and
State drug courts. The need for funding is just one
of the issues confronting the drug court movement.
Other needs include defining parameters and
standards for drug courts. At the Drug Court
Conference, participants described a wide variety
of approaches to defining the drug court's target
population, determining eligibility requirements,
implementing screening mechanisms, designating the
components of a drug treatment program, avoiding
net-widening, and defining a successful drug court
graduate. The need to establish appropriate drug
court standards is particularly important to help
ensure that Federal funds are spent on implementing
a clearly defined concept.

NIJ-sponsored research and evaluation 

The Crime Act of 1994 also provides support for
research and evaluation studies of drug courts.
The evaluations are intended to find out whether
drug court programs funded by the Act are having 
their desired effects, and the research will 
create a knowledge base that can be used in 
examining drug court policies and programs and 
applying this knowledge to improve them. NIJ is 
responsible for the evaluation and research and 
will be soliciting proposals to conduct the studies 
in the near future. 
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Justice and Treatment Innovation: The Drug Court
Movement, by John Goldkamp, published by NIJ and
the State Justice Institute, is a working paper of
the First National Drug Court Conference. It can be
obtained free from the National Criminal Justice
Reference Service (NCJRS), PO Box 6000, Rockville, MD
20849 (800-851-3420). Ask for NCJ 149260.