"Jail or prison is not a deterrent for substance abuse," said Scott Block, specialty court coordinator for McHenry County.

"Drug courts have been around for 20 years, but not everybody understands that treatment does work; just putting them in jail doesn't do much of anything to help an addict," Block said.

 The 22nd Judicial Circuit Court in McHenry County is currently planning a drug court with the McHenry County State's Attorney's Office, McHenry County Public Defender's Office, McHenry County Court Services, McHenry County Sheriff's Office, McHenry County BAR Association and area treatment providers. The drug court will be operational in December 2011.

Drug courts are the most researched of any criminal justice program, according to the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP), and the research proves that drug courts are successful.

"It's not just anecdotal evidence. These are hard numbers that show drug court works," said Christopher Deutsch, director of communications for NADCP.

One example is a study that shows, nationwide, 75 percent of drug court graduates remain arrest-free, two years after graduating from the program, according to a 2003 study by the Urban Institute and Caliber Associates, "Recidivism Rates for Drug Court Graduates."

Studies also show that 95 percent of drug abusers who go to jail return to drug abuse after being released, and 60 to 80 percent of drug abusers commit a new crime after release, according to the NADCP.

Cost Savings Help Drug Courts Grow

The nationwide growth of drug courts is due to cost-effectiveness, said Deutsch.
"States are seeing how they can save money by looking at drug court as a budget solution. New York has a drug court in every county and has seen savings of $250 million. They attribute drug courts to helping close four prisons," Deutsch said.

Block said the cost savings has led to the popularity of drug court. "It costs about $25,000 per year to incarcerate a person versus $3,000 to $12,000 for the drug court program," Block said.  The Illinois General Assembly passed a law in 2009 requiring all circuit courts to develop a drug court program.

Block explained that drugs play a huge role in area crime.
"About 80 percent of offenses involve either alcohol or drugs," Block said.

Block said he studied court statistics from last year and found about 800 cases could potentially be eligible. However, the drug court won't be able to serve that many offenders. It will handle about 50 to 60 people in the program at a time.

McHenry to Target Heroin Addicts

McHenry County's drug court will be a 12-to-18-month, three-phase program for high-risk, high-need offenders, 17 or older. Participants must be McHenry County residents involved in a non-violent crime. The program is a voluntary alternative to time spent in jail.

Studies have shown that high-risk, high-need individuals are best suited for the drug court program, Deutsch said.

"Seriously addicted, chronic offenders are going to be the people who are best served by drug court," Deutsch said.

The target population in McHenry County will be heroin addicts. "We've seen an increase in heroin-related arrests–it is most prevalent and highly addictive," Block said.

Block said many drug abuse professionals think the heroin problem can be partly attributed to McHenry County's close proximity to Chicago.

"It's cheaper; the stigma attached to heroin has been reduced; they don't think it's as bad as they used to. It's highly addictive. You can use it one or two times and become addicted." Block said.

A full assessment of individuals considered for the program will include evaluating the person's motivation level.  Individuals will be referred to the program by probation officers, public defenders and private attorneys.

"It is hard because you never know what will motivate someone with addiction. We have seen people dependent and actively using. One day, something clicks; they go into treatment and get sober. Others go in 10 to 15 times and never quit. It's always guesswork on what it will take," Block said.

Drug Court Participants Closely Monitored

The drug court program team includes a coordinator, a judge, a representative from the states attorney's office, defense counsel, a treatment provider, a probation officer and a representative from law enforcement. Deutsch said the team model is one of the components that make drug courts successful. Another component is random and regular drug screening.

McHenry County drug court participants will undergo random drug screenings and will have numerous contacts from a probation officer. They will appear before the drug court judge every one to two weeks. The drug court program is highly structured and participants are closely monitored and provided with treatment to overcome addiction.

The drug court will be part of the specialty courts in McHenry County, which includes an innovative mental health court, which has operated since 2007.

The McHenry County drug court is expecting to receive a grant from the U.S. Justice Department to help fund the program. Increasing court fees by $5 on every guilty plea will also help pay for the program.

There has been a buzz about the drug court, said Block. "There's a buzz because it could really help lighten the load in the court system and reduce drug addiction," he said.

Another outcome of drug court is that it can bring families back together.

"A characteristic is that families see repeated failures and get fed up. If you can show evidence that things are going better, family and friends become involved again," Block said.

Block plans to introduce the drug court program to McHenry County by talking to community groups. "It can be a hard sell–'This person has been arrested 28 times and now you're going to put him back in the community.' With regular probation you don't get this kind of supervision; this is a most intensive type of program. There's a thought out there that this is the easy way out. It's not easy. It's almost easier for some to just go to jail and have it over with," Block said.

"I think we are moving towards a day where drug court is available to every eligible offender in need," Deutsch said.

A 2009 U.S. Department of Justice study found that there are 1.2 million people who would be eligible for drug court, but did not have a drug court available, he added.

"As an organization our goal is to make drug court available to every one of those offenders. We know the benefits to the community–improved employment, improved families. We know drug courts work and there's no reason not to push for it," Deutsch said.