FLAGLER COUNTY ADULT\
DRUG TREATMENT DIVISION

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height="2.6034722222222224in"}

DRUG COURT\
PARTICIPANT ORIENTATION PACKET

**\
Draft: Thursday, January 25, 2007**

The Flagler County Adult Drug Treatment Division (drug court) is a
judicially led, treatment driven, cost effective collaborative that
benefits the community, non-violent drug offenders and their families by
reducing the devastation associated with criminally involved substance
abusers.

**FLAGLER DRUG COURT -- ORIENTATION PACKET**

###### **TABLE OF CONTENTS**

  ------------------------------------------------------------- ---------
  Welcome to Drug Court!                                        1

  Introduction, Program Description                             2

  Who May Enter, Intake, Orientation, Court Supervision,        3
  Courtroom Behavior and Goals                                  

  Substance Abuse Treatment                                     4

  Probation, Treatment Fees, Constructive Use of Time and Dress 5
  Appropriately                                                 

  Participant Fraternization and Drug Testing                   6

  Incentives, Sanctions and Phase Advancement                   7

  Expulsion, Unsuccessful Termination and Graduation            8

  Program Coordinator Memo                                      A

  Treatment Letter, Treatment Fees and Consent to Release       B
  Information                                                   

  Probation Letter, Travel Permit and Community Service Work    C
  Hours                                                         

  Random UA Memo                                                D

  Participation Application, Agreement and Disclosure           E

  Sample Participant Calendar for Phase One                     F

  Doctor Notice                                                 G

  Demographic Form                                              I

  Phase Advancement and Graduation Request Forms                J
  ------------------------------------------------------------- ---------

**WELCOME TO DRUG COURT!**

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height="1.6770833333333333in"}

We are pleased that you chose to participate in the Flagler County Adult
Drug Treatment Division! We began planning for your arrival years ago.
Your commitment begins now. Total participation is vital. We want to
assist you in your recovery, encourage you to improve your quality of
life, and make Flagler County a better place to live.

We intend to assist you in completing a program of effective substance
abuse treatment. We use graduated phases to encourage you to succeed.
You are not alone. Other people who are in recovery will also assist you
in developing a life style that is free from the use of alcohol and
other drugs.

This handbook is a guide that contains information that you will need to
successfully complete this program. We encourage you to read it and to
share it with your family and friends so that they can support you on
your road to recovery.

The answers to most of your questions concerning this program are in
this orientation packet. If you have any other questions, please do not
hesitate to ask your probation officer, treatment counselor or any Drug
Court Team Member. We wish you every success in this program.

***"Drug Courts Work!"***

Professionally yours,

##### The Drug Court Team 

-   Judge Kim C. Hammond, Circuit Judge / Drug Court Judge, Seventh
    Judicial Circuit

-   Jennifer Dunton, State Attorney's Office

-   Irwin Connelly and Richard Price, Public Defender's Office,
    386-437-7440

-   Carl Gandy, Stewart-Marchman Center, 386-864-0670 or 386-329-3725

-   Debra Flaherty, Break the Cycle, (386) 437-0026

-   Deborah Laso, DOC Probation Officer, 386- 437-7225

-   Lisa White, Clerk's Office, 386-437-7435

-   Law Enforcement

-   Michael Jewell & Wanda Huddleston, Court Administration,
    386-931-5760

**INTRODUCTION**

This program works with non-violent felony offenders who have substance
abuse problems. If you participate in this program, your quality of life
may drastically improve. This orientation packet covers information
about Drug Court. After reading it, you should have a good understanding
of what we expect. As a participant, you should follow the instructions
given to you by your probation officer, treatment counselor, and other
team members, especially the Judge. All participants are encouraged to
share this handbook with family and friends.

Under the leadership of the Honorable Kim C. Hammond, Circuit Court
Judge, the Flagler County Adult Drug Treatment Division (Drug Court) has
become a reality. Many community members have come together to develop
and implement this program. The Flagler County drug court program start
date of December 1, 2006 is made possible by a federal drug court grant
provided by the Office of Justice Programs.

######## PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

This Flagler County drug court program is a supervised, comprehensive
treatment program for non-violent, substance abusers charged with drug
related felony offenses. The program combines the efforts of the Circuit
Court, State Attorney's Office, Public Defender's Office, Court
Administration, Clerk of the Court, Sheriff's Office, Stewart-Marchman
Center, Break the Cycle and other treatment providers, the Department of
Corrections and multiple community members. This voluntary program
involves regular court appearances before the Drug Court Judge,
community supervision, substance abuse treatment counseling, random drug
testing, and twelve step meeting attendance. Referrals for life-skills
training, vocational training, educational advancement and job placement
are available to participants. The program length, determined by each
participant's individual progress, will be no less than one year. If you
are eligible and choose to participate in this program, you must be
willing to commit to the entire program. Depending on your legal status,
should you successfully complete the drug court requirements and
conditions, your charges may be dismissed.

##### **WHO MAY ENTER DRUG COURT?**

![](media/image3.wmf)Non-violent, adult felony offenders who reside in
Flagler County are eligible to enter this program. The candidate must
demonstrate that he/she has a substance abuse problem. Many program
participants will be placed on felony probation with a special condition
requiring completion of all drug court requirements. Those who choose to
enter the program early on during the court process may be eligible to
avoid probation and have their charges dismissed upon successful
completion or "graduation".

**THE INTAKE PROCESS**

The State Attorney's Office makes sure that all referrals meet the legal
entrance requirements for the program. Your attorney fully informs you
about the program so that you can decide if you would like to volunteer
to become a participant. You will be encouraged to view Drug Court
Hearings in progress. A substance abuse screening will be completed to
determine if you have a substance abuse problem. The Drug Court Judge
(with input from the Team) makes the final decision concerning program
eligibility. Entry into the program occurs when the Judge signs the
order. Expect to start right away!

######### 

######## DRUG COURT ORIENTATION

######### We want you to know what is expected of you while you participate in this program. Therefore, the following people will be involved in telling you about the program: your attorney, your treatment counselor, the program coordinator, the Judge, and your probation officer. All of the paperwork that you need for orientation is contained in this packet. [Please ask questions that will help you to understand. We want you to succeed!]{.underline} 

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**COURT SUPERVISION AND COURTROOM BEHAVIOR**

As a Drug Court participant, you will be required to appear Court
regularly. Missing a Drug Court Hearing may result in a warrant for your
arrest. At each appearance, the Judge will be given a report from the
Team concerning your progress, which will include drug testing results,
attendance, progress in treatment, supervision comments, etc. The Judge
may ask you questions about your progress and discuss any problems you
may be experiencing. If you are doing well, you will be encouraged to
continue the good work. We use incentives! If there are problems, the
Judge may impose sanctions -- even short jail sanctions.

You must speak directly with the Drug Court Judge concerning your
progress. You are responsible for your own behavior. Be on time.
Everyone should remain seated and quiet while in Court unless asked to
stand and speak. Address the Judge with respect. Remain in Court for the
entire Hearing unless approved to leave early. Turn off your cell phone
and pager.

######## 

######## GOALS

Although your treatment counselor and probation officer will work with
you to set individualized goals, these goals will apply to nearly every
participant.

1.  Remain free of alcohol and other drugs by living a drug free
    lifestyle

2.  Develop a law-abiding pattern of living

3.  ![](media/image5.wmf){width="1.5in"
    height="1.1034722222222222in"}Improve employability through
    vocational training and education

4.  Participate in twelve step support groups like AA and NA

5.  Improve social skills

6.  Enhance self-esteem and personal motivation

7.  Learn relapse warning signs and develop a personal relapse
    prevention plan

8.  Accept responsibility for financial obligations and learn budgeting
    skills

9.  Learn and apply better ways of coping with the problems that life
    offers

10. Develop and improve time management skills

######### SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT - CONFIDENTIALITY

Federal and Florida law protects your identity and privacy. Because of
these regulations, policies and procedures have been developed to guard
your confidentiality. You will be asked to sign a waiver authorizing the
transfer of information among all participating team members and
agencies.

######### SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT -- GROUP COUNSELING

You will be required to attend group treatment counseling sessions and
education classes that must not be missed unless properly excused in
advance or in the event of a true emergency. Please avoid making excuses
not to attend. Treatment groups are a major component of this program.
Arrive on time, participate as appropriate and remain until the event is
over. Otherwise, you may be counted as absent. Follow all of the
treatment provider's "house rules".

The following actions will not be tolerated:

1.  Violence or threats of any kind to staff or other participants

2.  Use and/or possession of drugs and/or alcohol

3.  Belligerent behavior or acts of vandalism to property

4.  Possession of any type of weapon

5.  Inappropriate sexual behavior or harassment

######## SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT - INDIVIDUAL COUNSELING

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You will be required to participate in individual counseling sessions
with your treatment counselor. Please take advantage of this valuable
opportunity to progress in the program. Additional sessions may be
scheduled if necessary.

######## SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT - FAMILY COUNSELING

Family counseling sessions will be conducted for participants and their
families / significant others. These sessions may help your family to
understand the basic principles of addiction so that they can support
you in your recovery. Perhaps these sessions will encourage someone
close to you to seek help also.

######## SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT AND SUPPORT GROUPS

Involvement in twelve-step support groups like Narcotic Anonymous (NA)
and Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) is important to your recovery. The Drug
Court requires you to attend and to provide written verification that
you are doing so. You should get to know the people at these meetings
who are recovering from addiction and living a drug-free lifestyle.
Developing this support system may be critical to a long-term successful
recovery. It is your responsibility to find out when and where meetings
take place. Your treatment counselor and probation officer will assist
you if necessary. Warning, everyone who attends these meetings is not
necessarily living a drug free lifestyle. Alternatives to AA/NA
attendance may be available if needed. Please address any concerns that
you may have about these support groups with your counselor.

######## SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT - LIFE SKILLS AND MORE

########  

As you advance in the program, life skills, anger management, parenting
classes and other types of educational sessions will be made available
to you. You are encouraged to take advantage of these activities, even
if they are not required.

######## PROBATION SUPERVISION

Report to probation as instructed! You must abide by all of the terms of
your Court Orders. Be prepared to provide a urine sample any time you
report to probation or treatment. You must notify your probation officer
if you are arrested or charged with any new law violation. You must
immediately notify Probation and the Court if you change your address.
If you are unable to report as required, inform your probation officer
concerning your problem. Unless it is a true emergency, you will not
likely be excused. Working closely with your probation officer should
help you to successfully complete this program.

######## TREATMENT FEES & COURT RELATED FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS

![](media/image7.png)Treatment fees are to be paid [\$20 per
week]{.underline} to Stewart-Marchman Center unless the Court orders
otherwise. Program participants with court related financial obligations
such as child support, restitution, crime victims' fund, and legal aid
fees are expected to make payments on a regular schedule. You may be
required to show proof of payments to your probation officer. If you
cannot make a payment, discuss your situation with your probation
officer in order to make other arrangements. Failure to make scheduled
payments while in this program may delay your progress.

######### CONSTRUCTIVE USE OF TIME, EMPLOYMENT & EDUCATION 

After advancing to Phase 2, you will be required to maintain full time
employment or participate in school full time. A combination of the two
is acceptable also. It is important for you to use your time
constructively. Idleness and boredom are not your friends. Probation
will verify your employment by visiting you on the job. Inform your
employer about your participation in Drug Court. You must inform
probation right away if your employment or educational status changes.
Although we will work with your schedule as much as possible, you cannot
miss court, group sessions and appointments due to conflicts in your
work schedule.

######## 

######## DRESS APPROPRIATELY

Program participants will be required to wear "appropriate" clothing
while participating in the program. Men must wear pants, shirt and
shoes. Ladies may wear pants, skirts or dresses of appropriate length
with a modest blouse. Women should not wear see through blouses, midriff
tops, tube tops, bathing suit tops or halter-tops. No hip hugger pants.
Clothing bearing drug or alcohol related themes, promoting, or
advertising alcohol or drug use are prohibited. No gang colors or gang
clothing. Sunglasses may not be worn inside the courtroom or to any drug
court related meetings. You may be asked to change your clothes if staff
notices that you are wearing clothing that is not appropriate. Speak
with your probation officer if you have any questions concerning what
clothing is appropriate to wear while participating in the program.

**PARTICIPANT FRATERNIZATION**

Entering into a new intimate relationship within the first year of
recovery often results in relapse. For this reason, participant
fraternization is generally discouraged.

![](media/image8.png){width="1.375in"
height="1.0208333333333333in"}**DRUG TESTING - "A POSITIVE IS A
POSITIVE"**

We believe that the answer to most problems cannot be made better by
drinking alcohol or using illicit drugs. Using alcohol and other drugs
can lead to your relapse. We understand that on rare occasion you may
need to take prescription and over the counter drugs.

In this program, you will be drug tested a lot! Instead of trying to
"catch you" when you use alcohol and other drugs, we would prefer to
assist you in remaining free of alcohol and other drugs. Eventhough we
strive to use the best testing methods possible, no drug testing system
is perfect. This program will only be successful for you, if you let it.
Do not sabotage yourself by trying to figure out how to "beat the test".

Failing to provide a urine sample upon request will be counted as a
positive drug test. Tampering with a test, using adulterants, and
smuggling in another person's urine will be dealt with in a much more
severe manner. Experience has taught us that making exceptions to this
policy usually enables addicts to continue to use drugs. We are against
that. Your success in this program depends on you holding yourself
accountable for your own actions. We want to help you to be honest. You
will not likely be "kicked out" of the program because you use drugs.
Instead, you will be held accountable while you continue to participate
in the program. We are very interested in assisting you to live a drug
free lifestyle. That is why you must also call the random drug testing
system every day to find out if you need to provide a sample for that
day. We want you to spend your time working on recovery instead of
arguing drug-testing results. Therefore, when a participant tests
positive on a drug test, the program's position is **["a positive is a
positive."]{.underline}**

**DRUG TESTING -- NO ALCHOHOL - ALCOHOL IS A DRUG**

Alcohol is a drug. Do not consume alcohol. You are not permitted to
enter an establishment whose primary purpose is to sell or distribute
alcohol. It may be smart for you not use tobacco or caffeine also, but
they are drugs that program participants may consume legally.

######### DRUG TESTING -- OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATIONS

We encourage you **[not]{.underline}** to resolve ailments and other
problems by using medications. Having said that, you may use over the
counter medications if needed; however, do this first. Discuss it with
your treatment counselor and probation officer. Do not take medications
that contain ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, phenylpropanolamine or alcohol.
These medications may test "positive" on a drug test. Examples of these
medications are Sudafed, Nyquil, Contac, Sine-Off and Allerest. This is
not a complete list. Read the label or ask the Pharmacist for
medications that do not contain these substances. Some over the counter
medications that do not contain these substances are aspirin, ibuprofen,
and acetaminophen. Read and follow the directions on the label.

######### DRUG TESTING - YOUR DOCTOR AND PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

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You should follow the medical advice of your doctor. We encourage you to
receive medical treatment from a qualified doctor. In fact, one
component of recovery is to properly address medical issues and physical
ailments. It is a good idea to get a physical examination by your doctor
on a regular basis. We do insist that you honestly disclose your
substance abuse history to your doctor.

You must register any prescription or over the counter medication with
your treatment counselor **[before]{.underline}** taking the medication
except in a life-threatening situation. In such a case, inform your
treatment counselor as soon as possible after taking such medications.
You may not be allowed to enter the program if you are using a mood
altering prescription drug or one that will test positive on a drug
test. You may become eligible for the program if you stop using the
medication under the supervision of your doctor, or if your doctor
prescribes another medication that is not mood altering and will not
test positive on a drug test.

If you [must]{.underline} briefly take a prescription medication that
will test positive on a drug test, your clean day count may be suspended
while you are taking the medication. You should not have to take this
type of prescription very often. Maintaining sobriety can be hard if you
have to take mood-altering drugs, even for a little while. Pain
medication can be a big problem. Many prescription drugs are effective,
not mood altering, and they will not test positive on a drug test. Most
antibiotics fit into this category.

## 

**INCENTIVES AND SANCTIONS**

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We use incentives and sanctions to help you to live a law-abiding,
drug-free lifestyle. You may have heard of the "carrot and the stick".
The Team looks for reasons to encourage you! Incentives are the
"carrots" that encourage you to accomplish your goals.

![](media/image11.png){width="0.4798611111111111in" height="0.875in"}

We also use sanctions if necessary, to help you to change your behavior
in meaningful ways. Remember the carrot? Well, sanctions are the "stick"
that might help to keep some people from going to prison. The threat of
such consequences might assist you to succeed in the program. The use of
incentives and sanctions, even incarceration, can motivate you to
succeed. If you have any good ideas concerning a good incentive or
sanction, please tell us. We may decide to use your suggestion.

![](media/image12.wmf){width="0.8569444444444444in" height="1.125in"}If
you are required to complete additional treatment requirements like
extra groups or residential treatment, we understand that it might feel
like a sanction to you. Please know that we do not intend for
**["treatment responses"]{.underline}** to be sanctions.

**PHASE ADVANCEMENT**

You will be eligible to advance to the next phase of the program once
you have completed all requirements of the phase that you are currently
in and the Judge, based on the Team's input, approves your advancement
to the next phase.

If you are required to complete a long term residential treatment
program while you are in drug court, you will be given the opportunity
to advance through the phases more quickly to allow you to complete drug
court in a reasonable amount of time. Please ask the Program Coordinator
for details.

##### **EXPULSION / UNSUCCESSFUL TERMINATION FROM DRUG COURT**

> We would like all participants to remain in treatment until they are
> able to live a law abiding, drug free lifestyle. Therefore, we do not
> want to terminate you from the program until we have tried very hard
> to assist you. If you will not complete the requirements of the
> program, the Drug Court Judge, based on the recommendations of the
> Team, decides if you will be unsuccessfully terminated from drug
> court. Typically, expulsion from the program may occur as a result of
> continuous failures to participate in treatment, continuous failures
> to complete all program requirements, numerous positive drug tests,
> tampering with a drug test or new charges such as:

-   Drug sales including trafficking

-   Multiple offender DUI or DUI with property damage or personal injury

-   Possession of firearm

-   Violent offenses (assault, domestic violence battery, robbery,
    > sexual offenses, etc.)

-   Other new charge will be considered on a case-by-case basis

######## 

######## Unsuccessful termination from the program will typically result in any lawfully allowed sentence for your charge, to include prison time, if the Judge deems is appropriate.

######## GRADUATION

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You will be eligible to graduate from the program upon approval of the
Drug Court Judge who will base his decision on your progress and the
input from the Team. To graduate, you will be required to advance to the
program's fourth phase and complete the phase four requirements. You
should be able to show how Drug Court has positively influenced your
life. **[Graduates will be honored at a special ceremony]{.underline}**.
Your family will be invited to join you as the Judge congratulates you
on successfully completing the Drug Court Program and achieving your
goals. Depending on your particular case, your charges may be dismissed,
you may be terminated early from probation or you may remain on
probation.