"The heart of the program is the children," Rowley said in a February 6 article in the Ithaca Journal.

The Family Treatment Court is one of three county drug courts, along with the Ithaca City Drug Court and Tompkins County Felony Drug Court. Tompkins County is the only county in New York that operates a felony drug treatment court and a family treatment court.

The Family Treatment Court, which is not a criminal court, is for parents whose children are in foster care or who are candidates for foster care because of the parents' substance use problems. The court's goal is to reunite families or keep them together. It uses caseworkers and aides from multiple local agencies including the Department of Social Services, Cornerstone, the Alcohol and Drug Council of Tompkins County, Tompkins County Mental Health and other mental health providers. The staff includes a coordinator and a probation officer, who serves as a case manager.

"The children benefit because there are more people doing problem solving," says Patricia Carey, a Family Treatment Court team member and deputy commissioner in the legal unit at the Department of Social Services. "The focus of the team is to ensure that the parents are getting the services they need. The goal is to make sure we're taking a holistic approach in looking out for the children's education and child's health and safety."

"It's remarkable to witness the successes," Rowley said. "Week by week, we see people coming in, not trusting, angry, hostile, and over time, the light goes on."

The Drug Treatment Court supervises the mandated recovery program of men and women who plead guilty to related crimes in Tompkins County. Addiction treatment and medical, dental, psychological, educational, legal and employment requirements are reviewed during daily obligatory sessions with members of the team and in weekly court sessions. The Ithaca Drug Treatment Court team is comprised of community members from probation, the district attorney's office, the Ithaca Police Department, and assigned counsel as well as representatives from local agencies who provide addiction and mental health treatment, education and family liaison services.

For more information on the Tompkins County Family Treatment Court, please contact Linda Stout, a substance abuse counselor and clinician at the Alcohol and Drug Council and court liaison, at 607-274-6288.