California Drug Use: California Drug Courts – Stay Out of Jail!

Get Help and Stay Out of Prison!

Drug courts developed as an alternative to the traditional court system in an effort to reduce the overwhelming number of cases, but also to more effectively combat drug and alcohol related crimes which may not be deterred through traditional punitive methods. The drug court program aims to reduce drug usage and repeat offenders, integrate treatment to rehabilitation, and reduce the number of children in the Child Welfare system through providing court supervised treatment.

Treatment for Nonviolent Offenders

Drug courts help to redirect cases for nonviolent offenders so that they are given the opportunity for treatment as an alternative to incarceration. Treatment is ultimately a more effective long term solution and ends up costing the state and community less money.

4 Types of Alternative Sentencing

In California, drug courts have adopted different strategies to find the most appropriate method to combat different crimes and situations. They can basically be divided into 4 types and have been implemented on the state and local level for adults and juveniles. They are largely differentiated by when treatment is offered as an alternative to time in jail.

1 – Pre Plea

The first type is the pre-plea model and is usually for drug possession offenders. It offers them the opportunity to enroll in a court supervised treatment program and if successfully completed nothing will be added to their criminal record. Failure to complete the program starts the process of filing charges.

2 – Post Plea

The post-plea model requires the offender to first enter a guilty plea before starting treatment. If they successfully complete the program which usually lasts nine months to a year, the charges will be dismissed. If they don’t complete the program, sentencing for the crime will take place.

3 – Post Adjudication

The third type is the post-adjudication model and is usually used with repeat drug offenders. After they have been convicted and know what their sentence is, they can enter treatment for the length of their sentence instead of spending it in custody. If they fail the treatment program, they will serve their original sentence.

4 – Civil Model

The last type is called the civil model and is used with those involved in a civil action, most commonly regarding child custody. They must enter treatment as a requirement to keeping custody or regaining custody of their child or children. If they are unable to complete the program, they will permanently lose custody.

If Cannabis is Legalized, Portugal Could Be a Window into California’s Future – In this video, I narrate my most recent article at CAIVN. Opponents of cannabis legalization worry that it will have a detrimental effect on society. That feeling is understandable, but citing a Cato study, I take a look at Portugal where all drugs were decriminalized in 2001. Ten years later not only has Portugal avoided a nightmare of spiraling drug addiction, all signs indicate that drug use in Portugal has declined. Read the original article here: caivn.org And please Digg it up here: digg.com My website: www.humblelibertarian.com

Poll: Lighter Penalties For Drug Use Backed By 70 Percent Of California Voters

Filed under: California Drug Use

Seventy percent of California voters want lighter penalties for personal drug use, according to new polling data from San Francisco-based polling firm Tulchin Research. The poll was commissioned by proponents of California state Sen.
Read more on Huffington Post

Pot policies in California can't rely on D.C. program

Filed under: California Drug Use

By Tom Howell Jr. A decision by Congress in 2009 to stop blocking the District's medical marijuana program should not be construed as federal permission to grow and use the drug, according to a recent legal opinion from California.
Read more on Washington Times

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