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Drug Rehabs for Criminal Justice Clients in the U.S.

Last updated on: Monday, 18 September 2023
  • What You'll Learn

Crime and addiction become an endless cycle making it necessary to find drug rehab. Numerous rehab centers provide specific services for clients caught up in the criminal justice system. DRS has compiled a directory of drug rehab centers that work with the criminal justice system to treat addiction and help the criminal behavior that may accompany it.

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List of Drug Rehabs for Criminal Justice Clients

Here is access to our entire drug rehabilitation database for criminal justice clients. Please select a state. If you need help locating the right treatment for you, do not hesitate to contact one of our treatment specialists at 1-800-304-2219.

State

Type of Treatment

These crimes can range from petty crimes, summary convictions, and also indictable offenses, and more serious crimes. In the past, a drug and or alcohol addiction was not always treated, and the person being charged or convicted was just given their punishment or just sent to prison.

Today, when persons are charged for drug and or alcohol-related crimes, there are options presented to them for treatment. This does not always happen of course, as every case is ultimately different and every person who is caught up in the criminal justice system has a different past and or record, but either way, they are given a chance and an option. The criminal justice system and the courts are starting to look at different methods to help these individuals, rather than just sending them to jail. Most first-time offenders who have been convicted of drug and or alcohol-related crimes will be given a sentence of treatment, whether this may be attending meetings, outpatient programs, counseling, residential drug and alcohol treatment, and also the treatment programs offered in state penitentiaries. After treatment, some criminal justice clients will choose to have a recovery coach in their life to ensure that their transition back into the real world is done as smoothly as possible and to have the support they need to do so.

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Drug Treatment Courts in America

Since the 1980s, there was an overwhelming emphasis placed on fighting the drug epidemic, or the war on drugs. The result of this was a drastic increase in the nation’s arrest and incarceration rates because of drug-related crimes. Many of the population surveys in the 1990s did report a decline in drug use, yet arrest and incarceration rates rose at a record level. In the past 20 years, drug-related crime has made up the most significant percentage of arrests in America. In the year 2000, more than 1.5 million persons were arrested for a drug offense, and four-fifths of these arrests were for drug possession. Prison populations across the nation rapidly grew because of drug-related crimes. The prosecution and sentencing policies became expensive and ineffective.

Eventually, community-based programs were developed that led to drug treatment courts. These courts handle only defendants with felony or misdemeanor drug cases. Typically, these are nonviolent arrestees with a history of substance abuse. Drug courts are grounded in the notion that all criminal cases are alike or require the same investment of court resources or time. Since the inception of drug treatment courts, the number of these programs has grown across the nation. In 1997 there were more than 370 drug treatment courts, and ten years later, there were over 1000 drug treatment courts. These programs offer an alternative to jail for offenders. As of 2019, all 50 states have drug courts, and there are over 2400 courts, and over 120,000 people processed annually.

Drug-Related Crime in America

It is very well known that there is a connection between criminal activity and drug and alcohol abuse, crimes are reported on a daily basis with the direct link being drugged and alcohol addiction. Drugs and drug abuse in America are related to crime in many different ways, such as the possession, manufacturing, and distribution of drugs classified as having a high potential for abuse. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, drug users in the general population are more likely than nonusers to commit a crime. In 2017 there were over 1.6 million drug law violations, and over 85% of them were for possession of a controlled substance, and only 14% were for sale or manufacture of a drug. The 2017 crime statistics revealed that violent crime and property crime declined in 2017 when compared to data in 2016. Property crime in 2017 made up of motor vehicle theft, burglary, and larceny-theft, whereas violent crime consisted of rape, murder, robbery, and aggravated assault.

There is a percentage of state and federal inmates who have admitted to committing their current offenses to obtain money for drugs. Many of the convicted property and drug offenders in local jails committed their crimes to get money for drugs. For example, many of the crimes committed against college students were committed by an offender perceived to be using drugs. Victims who are part of workplace violence believed the offender was drinking or using drugs at the time of the incident. Crime and addiction is often an endless cycle for many addicts. Drug courts throughout the nation routinely help first-time and even repeat offenders who have applied to take part in a drug court. The process to end the cycle starts with proper rehabilitation, which is offered through drug court.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), in 2004 over 15% of state and federal prisoners admitted to committing their current offenses to acquire money for their addiction. It was reported in 2002, close to one-quarter of offenders in local jails admitted to having committed their crimes to acquire more money for their addiction. Many victims of various forms of violence have reported the perpetrator was under the influence of drugs and or alcohol and was committing the crime to fuel their addiction. For example, between 1995 and 2000, over 40% of the violent crimes committed against college and university students were done by those under the influence of drugs and alcohol. It also has shown that over 30% of workplace violence was committed by persons under the influence of drugs and alcohol. In the same 2004 survey, it was reported that between 25% and 30% of the state and federal prisoners had committed their crimes while under the influence of drugs and or alcohol. There are hundreds of different statistics that report the same trend in many different categories relating to crime. The end result all seems to be the same, with drugs and or alcohol being the direct cause. Because of all of these trending statistics, the criminal-justice system started to explore new methods of handling the problem, with one of the more common methods being court-ordered drug and alcohol treatment.

Many different studies have been done that have shown when court-ordered treatment has been given the success of treatment has increased. For example, when DWI offenders have been ordered to meetings, out-patient and residential treatment and the pressure of serious legal action are against them, there have been reports of higher success rates. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a good percentage of people being admitted into drug and alcohol treatment reported that the legal pressure was a contributing factor in them seeking help. In other cases, the treatment may be court-ordered, where the person has no choice but to go to treatment, or they can face serious jail time along with their charges. These options and court-ordered treatments are very important in helping repeat offenders and addicts who are caught up in the criminal justice system. Unfortunately, success is not always seen with every offender who has been charged with drug-related crimes, but when the criminal-justice system works hand in hand with treatment centers and substance abuse treatment organizations, success can be seen. For example, if the offender does not have the highest of motivation, or has a long criminal record, this should not deter the option of receiving treatment. An intense treatment that is targeted specifically to the individual will help them show improvements and handle their addiction, which ultimately led them to be involved in the criminal justice system, to begin with. It was estimated in 2007 that drug abuse had cost society close to 200 billion dollars, with the majority of that being linked to drug-related crimes, and the cost of treating addicts with all factors included was just under 15 billion dollars. Drug and alcohol treatment is effective and has been proven to reduce costs and help people. There are many drug and alcohol treatment centers located all throughout the United States, which offer programs for offenders, and are set up to take court-ordered patients. These centers and programs are making a difference and giving people an opportunity to change.

Are Crime and Addiction Directly Connected?

There is a direct connection between crime and addiction; many addicts are caught up in an ongoing circle of crime and addiction and will require a court to order them to treatment. Crime occurs when addicts are wanting to fuel their addiction and will go to means that break the laws within the state.

CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ARTICLE

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MARCEL GEMME, DATS

AUTHOR

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Marcel Gemme has been helping people struggling with addiction for over 19 years. He first started as an intake counselor for a drug rehabilitation center in 2000. During his 5 years as an intake counselor, he helped many addicts get the treatment they needed. He also dealt with the families and friends of those people; he saw first-hand how much strain addiction puts on a family and how it can tear relationships apart. With drug and alcohol problems constantly on the rise in the United States and Canada, he decided to use the Internet as a way to educate and help many more people in both those countries. This was 15 years ago. Since then, Marcel has built two of the largest websites in the U.S. and Canada which reach and help millions of people each year. He is an author and a leader in the field of drug and alcohol addiction. His main focus is threefold: education, prevention and rehabilitation. To this day, he still strives to be at the forefront of technology in order to help more and more people. He is a Licensed Drug and Alcohol Treatment Specialist graduate with Honours of Stratford Career Institute. Marcel has also received a certificate from Harvard for completing a course entitled The Opioid Crisis in America and a certificate from The University of Adelaide for completing a course entitled AddictionX: Managing Addiction: A Framework for Succesful Treatment.