Abusers may in their lifetimes expect to have five treatment episodes and about 70 weeks spent in treatment, including detoxification. Excluding detoxification, there are likely to be three treatment episodes, and 63 weeks are likely to be spent in treatment. In the year following treatment, abstinence from criminal activity exceeds abstinence rates from drug use. These sanctions should be developed with the recognition that relapse is an expected symptom of chemical dependency, and that several relapses may occur before an offender becomes abstinent. Whenever possible, program guidelines should be structured to provide enhanced supervision and more intensive involvement in treatment as an alternative to re-arrest. . .
Drug treatment is effective in controlling criminal behavior and drug use . . .
Drug treatment eligibility criteria often result in a very small and selective pool of offenders to draw upon. Return to Commissioner Sharron Kelley's home page.