Study Shows Benefits of Arizona DUI/Drug CourtJune 17, 2003
Research Summary
A study evaluating the DUI/Drug Court in Coconino County, Arizona, shows that the 10-month, four-phase program is valuable for rehabilitating offenders and saves taxpayers money, the Arizona Daily Sun reported June 4.The drug court was established more than two years ago for nonviolent offenders convicted of alcohol and other drug related crimes.
The program includes regular drug testing and individual and group counseling. By working together, judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, addiction-treatment specialists, and probation officers are able to offer incentives to those who do well or place immediate sanctions on those who violate the terms of the court.
The Coconino County DUI/Drug Court Evaluation report, conducted by the Northern Arizona University Social Research Laboratory, compared drug court participants from May 1, 2001 to Oct. 31, 2002, to data from a control group of similar offenders. The research found that drug-court participants spend more time in treatment, have more probation contacts, spend less time in jail, work more, and have a higher pass rate on drug tests.
"In addition, DUI/Drug Court participants make more positive contributions to society during an average month, working more hours each week and spending more time in school than people processed through the traditional criminal-justice system," said Frederic Solop, director of the Social Research Lab.
The study further showed that the county pays $6,408 per drug-court participant, compared to $22,740 per offender in the traditional criminal-justice system.
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