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Prevention / Treatment Initiatives : Focus on Drug Court Evaluation by Steve Freng |
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Jan 2000 |
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As mentioned in a previous edition of the Newsletter, the NW HIDTA has contracted with the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute (ADAI) to design and conduct an evaluation of the Drug Court Programs operating within our region. This article will provide a more in-depth description of the evaluation, currently of particular interest for two reasons: the convening of the 2000 Session of the Washington State Legislature, and the implementation of the Yakima County Drug Court Program, now bringing the concept to each of the seven NW HIDTA counties. Drug Court Programs, which have grown in number over the last 10 years to approximately 600 across the country, are special courts which are organized to handle cases involving drug-using offenders through comprehensive supervision, drug testing, treatment services and immediate sanctions and incentives. They provide a rigorous community-based program (usually lasting 12-18 months) in lieu of adjudication and incarceration, with the intention of stopping the “revolving door” for addicted offenders in the criminal justice system. In Washington State, Drug Court Programs have been developed at the Superior Court level in participating counties, and generally serve non-violent felony offenders. Planning and design development for the NW HIDTA/ADAI Drug Court Evaluation began in 1998 in collaboration with the State Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse (DASA) and the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED). At that time, CTED supported Drug Court Programs with Byrne Grant funds, affording the inclusion of the Spokane County and Kitsap County programs in the evaluation. Thus the initial scope of the project entails the King, Pierce, Thurston, Skagit, Spokane and Kitsap county programs; efforts are underway to accommodate the inclusion of the newer Snohomish, Whatcom and Yakima county programs. The evaluation is a four-year project that will produce specific descriptions of each program, as they have unique organizations and characteristics, and two outcome-based components. These components will compare three groups of program participants: those who complete the Drug Court Programs, those who enter but fail to complete the programs, and those who are offered entry but decline to enroll (thereby choosing “normal” adjudication of their cases). The first component is a retrospective study of the programs in King, Pierce and Spokane counties, given their longer histories of activity. This component will examine the differences between participant groups pertaining to reoffending/rearrest, reincarceration, employment income, and utilization of treatment and health services. The second component is a prospective study, which will examine the differences in outcomes for each of the three participant groups in all six of the Drug Court Programs from January 1, 1999 onward. The principal advantage of the prospective study is that it will allow variations in the outcomes to be examined in terms of the differences in Drug Court Program administrative models and treatment programs, as well as participant characteristics and behaviors. The Drug Court Evaluation therefore seeks to accomplish three goals:
A report on the retrospective component of the Drug Court Evaluation is to be available as the 2000 Session of the Washington State Legislature convenes. It is anticipated that the benefits realized by these programs in regard to public safety, public policy and public funding will be clearly demonstrated, strengthening on-going efforts to secure State funding support for programs throughout the state. The evidence will likely substantiate experience to date that Drug Courts significantly improve the impact and outcomes of drug treatment, and are possibly the most important innovation within the criminal justice system in the past 40 years. Inside this issue: |