How America Overdosed on Drug Courts
"Hailed
as the most compassionate way for the criminal justice system to deal
with addicts, drug courts were designed to balance punishment with
rehabilitation. But after 25 years, the verdict is in: Drug courts
embolden judges to practice medicine without a license—and they put
lives in danger....
...Drug
courts celebrated their 25th anniversary last year. Designed for
defendants who have committed non-violent felonies such as drug dealing
or burglary while addicted, they have been touted as a perfect balance
of treatment and punishment, and as a way for the most corrigible
offenders to avoid the harsh sentences mandated by drug-war laws. The
idea is appealingly simple. If defendants complete a program of drug
testing and mandatory treatment—often including short jail terms, known
as flash incarcerations, in the case of serious rule violations—they can
avoid lengthy mandatory prison terms. Those who fail to 'graduate' from
the program, in the self- improvement-geared parlance of drug courts,
face the mandated sentence, or sometimes an even harsher one. Coercion,
the theory goes, is the key to rehabilitation."
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