NCJ Number
144141
Journal
University of Colorado Law Review Volume: 64 Issue: 3 Dated: (1993) Pages: 809-825
Date Published
1993
Length
17 pages
Annotation
The number of drug offenders in prison, on probation or parole, and in alternative programs has increased significantly during the last decade, and policies toward drug offenders in State criminal justice systems during the 1990's will be a key determinant of criminal justice policy in general.
Abstract
The treatment of drug offenders raises both theoretical and practical questions in the criminal justice environment of the 1990's. For example, drug treatment provides a new context for debates about the proper role of compulsory treatment programs in criminal justice. As drug offenses become more prevalent and important in criminal justice adminsitration, and drug treatment resources are not available to cover all convicted offenders who qualify for them, treatment space should first be allocated to volunteers. The case for some version of treatment-on-demand is quite strong as the number of drug users in prison increases. Further, a random assignment experiment should compare a control group of drug offenders for whom voluntary drug treatment is made available to an experimental group of drug offenders who have no choice but to participate in a treatment program. In community-based treatment settings, there is a need to evaluate programs of drug surveillance alone against compulsory treatment programs with surveillance characteristics. The most important policy issue of the 1990's may involve community drug treatment and surveillance sanctions as an alternative to the combination of short prison time followed by community drug surveillance. The justification for and effectiveness of drug treatment programs are examined.