Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 5, 1995 TAG: 9507050108
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Starting in September, some drug addicts who get arrested in Roanoke will have a new option - plead guilty right away, and receive treatment instead of potential jail time.
After more than a year of planning, court officials are preparing to start a Drug Court that will allow offenders to enter a yearlong program aimed at helping them overcome their addictions.
Drug Court participants will receive substance abuse treatment, education, vocational training and other services at a Campbell Avenue day facility while reporting back to the court at least once a week for a judge to monitor their progress.
The idea is to allow the Drug Court to "see the same people over and over again, so they can be held accountable, said Roanoke Circuit Judge Diane Strickland, one of the program's organizers.
Although offenders will be required to plead guilty in order to take advantage of the Drug Court, their charges will be dismissed once they successfully complete the program.
"One of the keys to the Drug Court program is to try to get people in treatment as soon as possible," Strickland said.
The theory is to inform people of the program within two days of their arrest, catching them at a time when they are the most inclined to acknowledge their drug problem and seek help for it.
"The whole concept and goal of this is to get these people in treatment within 15 days of their first contact with police," Circuit Judge G.O. Clemens told a gathering of defense lawyers at an orientation for the program last week.
While successful Drug Court participants ultimately will have their charges dropped, the program is far from a "get-out-of-jail-free" pitch.
The program's target population of 125 annually will consist mostly of people charged with simple possession and small-time dealers who sell only to support their habits - the types of offenders who often are candidates for suspended sentences and probation anyway.
By enrolling in Drug Court, those people actually will be subject to much closer scrutiny, and will be required to do more than offenders who are placed on probation.
The program has some restrictions; people charged with an offense that involved violence or a weapon will not be admitted, nor will those with prior records of violence. Some people on probation also may be excluded.
Guidelines are vague about what kind of drug offense can exclude someone from the program. Prosecutors, however, will have veto power to prevent someone from enrolling.
"Obviously, we don't want any drug dealers who are only in it for the money going through the Drug Court," Strickland said. "We're looking for people who have addictions and are not preying on society, but in a very real sense are a drain on society."
Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell said the guidelines are "deliberately broad in that we're not trying to limit the potential target group."
"It's essentially targeted at people who have indicated a sincere desire to receive treatment and kick their substance abuse habit."
The Drug Court is slated to begin Sept.1 in Roanoke, and Jan.1 in Roanoke County and Salem.
Here is how it is envisioned to work:
When they are arraigned, offenders will be advised by the judge about the Drug Court and told to consult with their attorney for details.
If the offender decides to pursue the Drug Court program, his or her attorney will first check with the commonwealth's attorney to make sure the offender qualifies.
From there, the case will be referred for screening to the Drug Court director, John Rauck, who heads the Probation and Parole Department for the Roanoke Valley's courts.
After the offender's background information is compiled through the screening process, he or she will waive a preliminary hearing in General District Court and go directly to Circuit Court, also waiving indictment by a grand jury. Once in Circuit Court, the offender will appear in Drug Court, which will meet three days a week.
After hearing a guilty plea and a summary of the evidence, the judge will delay a ruling on guilt or innocence and order the defendant to the Drug Court.
Offenders will then go the the day-reporting facility at 360 W. Campbell Ave., which will be staffed by at least two new counselors and supplemented by existing probation officers. At its last session, the General Assembly approved $440,000 for the facility.
There, offenders will receive treatment for their drug addictions as well as GED training, vocational programs and other services. A wide variety of services - such as family therapy, anger control and instruction on health and parenting issues - will be made available based on the needs of the individual. Other options will include home electronic monitoring, community service or placement in a residential treatment facility for more serious drug addictions.
All Drug Court participants will undergo regular urine tests, and will report back to the court at least once a week. Offenders who fail to complete the program could face conviction and incarceration.
Some details of the program may change; the Campbell Avenue location may be moved, and the criteria for acceptance may be expanded once the program gets under way.
At last week's orientation, judges emphasized that defense lawyers will play a key role in the program.
Because the emphasis will be on the defendant admitting guilt and receiving treatment as soon as possible, defense lawyers will be required to make a quick decision on whether to forfeit their client's rights by having them plead guilty so early in the process.
Some lawyers expressed concerns about not having enough information shortly after an arrest on which to base a decision that usually is not made until several months later.
Circuit Judge Clifford Weckstein likened it to the "meatball surgery" performed in the television show M*A*S*H, in which doctors had to make split-second decisions about the fate of their patients.
"You've got to make a meatball evaluation," Weckstein told about 40 lawyers who attended the orientation.
"Is it likely you can walk this person, and if you can is it likely it will do any good for that person, or will they get arrested again three blocks from the courthouse?" Weckstein asked.
"The system fails, and the Drug Court falls flat on its face, if the defense bar says to its clients en masse, 'There's nothing in that program for you.'"
by CNB