Drug Court

Alternative Justice is on the rise.

What is Drug Court?

Drug Court is an alternative justice option that has swept the country. It’s designed, with the assistance of the community and various treatment providers to provide an option for criminal offenders to get treatment for their drug addiction, which seems to be the root cause of a significant portion of criminal activity.

I was accepted into the drug court program in February of 2016 as a part of a plea deal for two counts of Distribution of a Controlled Substance (i.e. Selling meth to an undercover cop). I have now been a part of the program for a year. My experience has varied widely from the beginning. Unsure of what to expect, I figured I would try to get what I can out of the program. I was honest from the beginning about everything, my drug use, my mistrust for the system and doubts about the program. Commissioner Davis seemed to accept, understand, and appreciate everything I was expressing. I was placed into an outpatient drug treatment program called Heartland Behavioral Health. I was given a counselor and placed in Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) and what I can only assume was a process group.

I had expressed my desire to be with my son’s mother with whom the circuit court placed a special condition that we not associate with each other.  The judge said they would look into it and never did. Throughout the year I watched the judge deal with all kinds of people. The good, the bad, the ugly. I had heard before I joined the program that Judge Davis was a horrible person who only cared about money. I can assure you that is not the case.

The Judge

Judge Peggy D. Davis is the Drug Court Commissioner for Greene County. She assumed this position in August 2000. She has served as a Public Defender for the State of Missouri, an Assistant Prosecutor for Greene County and as an Assistant Prosecutor for the City of Springfield. She also practiced general civil law with Woolsey Fisher Whitaker and McDonald in Springfield, MO. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1985. In 1988, she received her Juris Doctorate from Oklahoma City University School of Law.

I’ve been on the verge of throwing my life away and knowing that nothing is going to save me and I’m broken, unfixable, and without hope, standing in front of the judge, having not slept in two days knowing she’s going to send me to jail to continue my life as a criminal, to lock eyes with her and feeling a wave of compassion radiate from her soul and wash over me. I walked out of court that and felt the exact same way I did after I believed I had been saved by Christ himself. The grass was greener, sun looked brighter, and I was thankful to be alive and a part of that program. I knew she truly wanted to help and believed in the program.

The Court

Each participant in the program has a team of people to utilize for their treatment. Granted, each person has the threat of prison hanging over their head. However, the team consisting of the Judge, a treatment counselor, a prosecutor, and a probation or parole officer.

Every other week the participants in the program go in front of the judge, flanked by their probation officer (PO), their counselor, with the prosecutor usually sitting at the table, and the court pews are filled to the maximum occupancy with people waiting in the hall due to lack of seating. We, the participants, have an opportunity to discuss briefly how things have either progressed or digressed since our last meeting with the judge.

The PO will discuss item they are concerned about such as, housing, employment, contact, arrests, and urinary analysis (UAs).

The counselor will discuss our treatment attendance and how they see us growing in ourselves and the program. The content of our counseling session remains private, unless it’s brought up by the participant. The counselor will also talk about the participation and dedication of the participant in treatment.  Believe it or not, there are people in the program who try to manipulate the system and not fully participate in the treatment process.

The Prosecutor doesn’t really do a whole lot through the process until one begins to run out of chances and the legal process becomes a factor once again. Although, there is a staffing session held before court convenes and the prosecutor expresses their opinion which is the same as everyone else, What can we do to help this individual?

Benefits

The benefits of participating in the drug court program are vast and varied. There have been times that I was around old friends who are still deep in their active addiction and need the help that I’m being provided and all I can think about is how lucky I am to have the opportunity to participate in the program. For a person to receive treatment, counseling, would be thousands and thousands of dollars.

To have a group of compassionate people to hold you accountable and assist you in being a better person, is priceless. I have also been given monthly bus passes, which is truly helpful, and one of the most fundamental pieces of assistance that has laid a foundation for everything else I have now accomplished.

The Latest

I had requested of the court to set a case review hearing. A case review is where the team discusses the overall progress of an individual participant. I requested the hearing for myself to push me to maintain a positive trek and do better than I was. I had requested the review back in November and the Review was set for January 12^th, 2017.

 From the time I requested the review hearing until January 10^th, I missed no UAs, made it to all my counseling appointments, became employed, published a book, started the Living Criminal – American Criminal Brand, started this blog, created my website livingcriminal.com, and started on my news column tdrucker.newsvine.com.

One of my blog post titled, “How to Steal from Wal-Mart”, which remains one of my most read posts, was met with concern by the courts. They considered termination from the program because of the content. The judge felt she had a duty to keep the community safe from such criminal activity. After we discussed it she seemed to understand the work I was doing and simply reset the review hearing to the 31^st of January.

On the 31^st of January we discussed my progress and that I was doing well. I was being given a probation violation for association. This violation is a result of my allowing my pregnant fiancée to live with me, despite the no contact order. I had been requesting for an entire year for the court to consider that very matter. I understand at various points last year it would not have been in our best interests. The judge wanted to see Christina and I at the same time to discuss everything and another court date was set, February 9^th, 2017. Until that time Christina was forced to move out and we were to have no contact.

Final Thought

The drug court system is a prime alternative to simply locking people up. I personally couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity. The drug court program has its limits and short comings, such as being run by the ever so fallible human beings, and financed through grants and payments of the participants. The number of services utilized are drastically less than the number that are needed. The people who participate in the program must have one thing…A desire for a different life than the one they had while in the streets feeding their active addiction.

I am seriously thankful for the drug court program. I have moved my life forward leaps bounds because of this program. Not to mention the remained drug free and have no desire to use.

I believed at one point in time that it was all about money for the state. It is not. Soon I’ll be doing a blog post about the money flow of the drug court program to dispel the idea that it’s all about the money.

Respectfully,

American Criminal