Drug Court

The Drug Court concept was pioneered in Miami-Dade County in response to the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980's and the resulting explosion of drug cases. Rather than a traditional trial court, Drug Court may be more properly regarded as a treatment program. No one is adjudicated in Drug Court. If a person has no prior criminal history and successfully completes the program, his or her case is nolle prosed (an announcement that the State is no longer going to prosecute the case). If the person has a prior criminal history and successfully completes the program, he would receive a withhold-of-adjudication on the charges.

Drug Court is purely voluntary and people referred to Drug Court are regarded as addicts, not criminals. They are treated with dignity and are expected to participate in the development of treatment plans to address their needs. If an individual chooses not to participate, the case is transferred to a traditional trial court for normal felony case processing.

Drug Court participants have access to a substance abuse treatment continuum that includes residential treatment, outpatient treatment and support groups depending upon the client’s needs. In addition to substance abuse treatment, Drug Court clients have access to assistance with housing, education, jobs and transportation.

There are thousands of Drug Court successes, people who have turned their lives around, who are drug and alcohol free and are now productive members of our community. Those successes have been based upon the individual’s commitment to turn his life around and the opportunity to do so in a therapeutic environment combined with periodic court reviews. The voluntary nature of the Drug Court assures that the programming will be of value to the clients. The combination of intensive judicial interaction and treatment allows a person to be successful in establishing a drug-free life and becoming a productive member of society.

Drug Court Process

Shortly after a person charged with a drug related felony is booked into the jail, the person is screened by the Pre-Trial Services Unit of the Miami-Dade Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to determine whether the person meets Drug Court admission criteria.

A person charged with felony possession and/or purchase of a controlled substance, and who has no violent criminal history, may qualify for the program. If a person meets the criteria, his or her case is transferred to Drug Court for the first appearance/bond hearing. In some cases, screeners may inadvertently send a Drug Court-eligible individual to a regular bond hearing and the case ends up in a regular trial court. If the person qualifies, the trial court judge may transfer the case to Drug Court. At the Drug Court first appearance, a determination is made whether the individual actually qualifies for Drug Court diversion and whether the individual wants to participate in a treatment program. In exchange for participating in the Drug Court, the person waives their right to a speedy trial. Drug Court clients are in treatment for a minimum of one year. People who are homeless, but otherwise qualified to enter Drug Court may participate through HART (the Homeless Assessment, Referral and Tracking Program).

If the individual agrees to the conditions of Drug Court, he will be tentatively accepted as a condition of pre-trial release. Depending on the person’s assessment, an intake counselor may recommend DATP (the Diversion and Treatment Program), the county-run outpatient treatment program, or an inpatient substance abuse program. An individual may choose to go to a privately-run program, provided the program is acceptable to the Court and complies with all Drug Court requirements. Individuals in private programs must attend 2 individual or group counseling sessions per week, submit 2 urine samples per week, attend 2 NA (Narcotics Anonymous) or AA (Alcoholic Anonymous) meetings per week and appear in court as required to discuss their progress with the judge.

During the time a person is participating in the Drug Court program, he will receive substance abuse counseling and treatment, will be regularly tested for the presence of drugs and scheduled for hearings in court to discuss his progress with the judge. In court, the judge will review the treatment counselor’s report regarding the individual’s performance in the program. If the judge suspects that the person may be relapsing, the judge may require him to be tested for drugs, set court appearance dates more frequently or order the individual into detoxification or jail. If the person fails to appear in court, the judge will issue an arrest warrant.

In Drug Court, as with every client the Public Defender’s Office represents, the attorney cannot reveal confidential information without the client’s consent, nor advocate a position contrary to the client’s wishes.

Drug Court Treatment Program

Most participants in Drug Court go to DATP, the county-run intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment program, for at least one year. DATP is a three phase outpatient treatment program that gives people the opportunity to break the cycle of addiction while living at home.

The program includes drug testing, counseling, and regularly-scheduled court appearances to discuss treatment progress. As the individual progresses, the frequency of drug testing, counseling and court appearances may be reduced.

Treatment phases include:

• Phase 1: Detoxification. During this phase the individual must attend an hour long counseling-session at the treatment center every weekday, give urine samples as requested and may receive acupuncture treatments. Once the person consistently tests negative for the presence of drugs for a reasonable period, he will be transferred to Phase Two.
   
• Phase 2: Stabilization. During this phase, the individual is required to visit the treatment center three times a week for counseling sessions, to give urine samples as requested and may continue receiving acupuncture treatments. Based upon individual success during this phase the person will be advanced to Phase Three.
   
• Phase 3: Aftercare. During this phase, the individual is expected to attend two counseling sessions a week, continue to give urine samples as requested, attend AA or NA meetings and become employed.
  In addition to substance abuse treatment, Drug Court participants have access to assistance with housing, education, jobs and transportation and they are encouraged to take advantage of these opportunities. After a minimum of one year in the program and a significant period of satisfactory compliance the person is recommended for graduation.
   

Depending on the person’s prior criminal history, charges may be dismissed and the person may be eligible to have his criminal record sealed or expunged.