Following the success and level of co-ordination created by US drug courts a number of other countries have implemented, or are planning to implement, a drug court model. Ireland, Bermuda and Jamaica are due to have part-time drug courts in operation by the end of the year. The experience of the US and other counties, as considered by the United Nations expert group on drug misuse, shows that there is no single module for drug courts. What works best in one jurisdiction may not in another. However, what is particularly evident is the core underlying characteristics are the same.
Courts already have powers of punishment for non-compliance of probation orders.
This report notes that other pre-requisites would need to be in place before a drug court approach could be adopted in Scotland. These would include the availability of sufficient local treatment and testing facilities and other measures to meet any conditions that the court may apply. Investment in comprehensive planning and the development of drug court team training would also be essential to ensure a clarity of purpose, effectiveness, and co-ordination between key players. However, the establishment of full time specialist drug courts in Scotland would not sit easily within the Scottish system and may in any case be impracticable, given other demands on the system. The report concludes that, while drug courts are not a quick or magic solution to the growing problems of drug offending, they appear to have demonstrated benefits in every jurisdiction where they have been introduced not just for those brought before them but also for society more generally in both social and financial cost terms.