Exclusive: Inside Bermuda’s Drug Treatment Court

[SteamboatBillJr]

Exclusive: Inside Bermuda’s Drug Treatment Court

By Cooper Stevenson
Published Mar 28, 2014 at 8:00 am (Updated Mar 27, 2014 at 10:44 pm)



Within a criminal justice system they have long been loath to trust, non-violent drug offenders are finding empathy, therapy and support — with astonishing results.

Clients who complete Bermuda’s progressive Drug Treatment Court — a court-supervised treatment programme — are significantly less likely to commit crimes again than those who serve prison time, according to figures provided by Court Services.

In exchange for offering anonymity to participants, The Royal Gazette has been allowed unprecedented access into the court, where the stories told can range from life-affirming tales of triumph, to portraits of the heart-rending realities of substance abuse and the dark tragedies that lie at the root of addiction.

In the ten years the court has been in operation, only seven percent of participants reoffend while in the programme.

In 2013, just four percent of participants were rearrested, compared to Westgate Correctional Facility where inmates reoffending at a rate of 34 percent within a year of release.

In America, where drug treatment courts are beginning to become established, research by the Department of Justice shows recidivism rates averaging between eight and fourteen percent.

Furthering the court’s popularity in the US are financial savings of $254 million in prison-related expenses for the state of New York alone.

The scenes that unfold within Bermuda’s court are unlike any other.

The presiding magistrate, Juan Wolffe, opens sessions casually, asking clients about their health and well-being and often exchanging jokes before getting down to nuts and bolts of proceedings — rehabilitation reports which are read aloud in legalese by members of Court Services.

He asks questions, lots of questions, extracting with the delicacy of a professional psychologist emotions and memories the court’s ‘clients’ have long suppressed.

The drug court’s high rate of success — estimated between 75 and 80 percent — underscores what prosecutors and defence attorneys alike have long suspected: therapeutic jurisprudence rather than jail time is far more potent and cost-effective in preventing future criminal behaviour.

Part of the court’s effectiveness can be attributed to the screening process; a place in Drug Treatment Court is reserved only for those willing to submit to intensive supervision in order to achieve rehabilitation.

But even then, hesitation to buy into the programme can persist, according to Mr Wolffe.

“You have to take into consideration that these are individuals who, for many years, have not only used drugs, but have also engaged in manipulative behaviour,” he said after overseeing one day’s proceedings.

“So complying with, or being in, a structured environment is not something they are initially used to or responsive to.

“But you know, for them, the biggest motivation is to be clean. They’re tired, they’re absolutely tired of their lives you know, and so when they come on they are engaged fully.”

That motivation is perhaps best exemplified in an exchange between Mr Wolffe and a client who found himself frustrated at his inability to build a traditional Bermuda kite during a therapy workshop.

“But you’re Bermudian!” Mr Wolffe objected.

“I know,” the client replied. “I kept saying I couldn’t make a kite, but then someone said: ‘if you cant make a f***ing kite, how the f**k are you going to recover? Well I can tell you right now, your worship, I got three kites hanging in my window.”

The former addict went on to describe his battles with the urge to use, beaming with pride at his own ability to control his addiction.

Mr Wolffe told the man he had reached a milestone. The room applauded.

According to defence counsel Saul Dismont, the approach puts responsibility in the clients’ hands, while providing them with the structure and tools to achieve their own rehabilitation.

But at the centre of the drug court’s success, he said, are the participants themselves.

“The people who deserve the credit for successful rehabilitation are the people that do it,” said Mr Dismont.

“Drug Treatment Court just provide them the support, but clearly the most important part of that support is the availability of appropriate and effective rehabilitative services.”

Divided into five phases, clients graduate through the programme as they complete certain requirements, beginning with 30 consecutive days of sobriety.

The speed at which they move through the programme depends entirely on the clients’ ability to reach the requirements of each phase, which may vary depending on their individual needs.

Clients are told not to rush, to move at a pace that works best for them as they forge on into recovery.

Many take several years before they complete the programme, which is only possible after 365 consecutive days without a relapse.

During that time, clients form relationships, uniting under the shared torment of addiction and a commitment to rehabilitation.

So strong are the bonds formed in the courtroom — which resembles more of a group-therapy session rather than any kind of criminal proceeding — graduates often return years after finishing, just to talk.

“Many of them have had the experience of these sort of traditional court models which can at times be adversarial, intimidating and authoritative,” said Mr Wolffe.

“In drug court, while we do have certain rules and regulations and compliance, they feel more comfortable in the setting and I think they respond to that.”

http://www.royalgazette.com/article/20140328/NEWS/140329735

 

[SteamboatBillJr]

Folks so many poor and black people were disproportionately victimized in the War on Drugs. The developing world places a lot of stock in these progressive nations. There has to be a American leader courageous enough they build the foundation so we will get better. The grass roots support is already there.

 

[neversickanymore]

Im many studies the most significant factor that affects recidivism is employment.

In years past before interconnected computer criminal record system a person who was convicted of a felony could move away and start a new life.

In todays world that pretty much impossible. So we have all these people tagged with life ruining records for life. This needs to change.

If we don't allow people to serve thier sentences (crimes with victims) or successfully complete treatment (victim less crimes) and then have the record o0f thier mistakes be removed then we will continue to see recidivism and problems.

If a drug dealer gets out of prison and has not chance at a decent job or even employment they are forced to go back to dealing drugs and the cycle goes on.

If a drug user picks up a felony then they may find themselves seriously motivated out of financial need to also begin to work in the black market or crime.

For this reason I believe drug courts need to provide a pathway to successfully complete treatment and be welcomed back into society with out having to shoulder a life stifling record for life.

In a recent study done by the department of corrections in one us state looked at recently released felons. Less than half were able to find jobs. The ones who were able to had an average yearly income under 11,000.

Of course many of them are going to commit more crimes or go back to using.

Unemployable, slave wages, or take your chance at prison to have some sort of a life. Thier fault or the systems??

Its good to see more successful approaches being taken. I think they also need to implement pathways to fully reinstate offenders into society.

If you don't allow a person back into society, then why would you expect them to adopt and follow its rules.

 

[SteamboatBillJr]

I'm on record as saying that not only do I think carefully prescribed medical use of marijuana may in fact be appropriate and we should follow the science as opposed to ideology on this issue, but I'm also on record as saying that the more we treat some of these issues related to drug abuse from a public health model and not just from an incarceration model, the better off we're going to be.

neversickanymore this sounds similar to you.