Grant County works to establish drug court

EPHRATA — Grant County is in the process of implementing a drug court aimed at reducing recidivism among defendants with a history of drug use associated with their alleged crimes.

“From our perspective, being the person who’s with the client, trying to do our best for our client is what we (want). We want them to be successful in rehabilitating their lives,” said Grant County Director of Public Defense Brett Hill.

The county is hoping to save money, though, by reducing the use of the proverbial revolving door faced by many defendants who face drug addiction, said Grant County Superior Court Judge Tyson Hill. As a former prosecutor, the judge said he regularly saw situations in which the defendant was a repeat offender on some level. Often, he said, the defendants would be charged with thefts because they were looking for items of value to sell to fund their substance abuse habits.

Director Hill and Grant County Prosecutor Kevin McCrae both said they’d had similar experiences to Judge Hill’s and hoped the development of a drug court for the county would reduce the use of that revolving door.

Judge Hill and McRae said the program is not for violent offenders, such as those accused of armed robbery, battery, rape or other violent offenses. Rather, the focus will remain on nonviolent offenders who simply need help to get their lives in order.

Judge Hill also said the sentencing process for repeat offenders with drug abuse concerns isn’t much of a deterrent. An offender on his fifth offense may only get an 8-month sentence. Meanwhile, that sentence is often reduced due to good behavior while serving and an inmate may end up back on the street before they’re fully recovered from their addiction – leading to additional recidivism.

“Even if this person has been convicted four previous times for committing theft up to $5,000, the most we can really sentence them to in custody is five months,” Judge Hill said. “On top of that, they get statutory good time, which means one-third of that sentence is reduced if they behave themselves in custody. So, they’re back out on the street in two to three months at the most anyway.”

By sentencing the offenders to treatment and monitoring, Judge Hill said the court is helping them to avoid additional offenses. If the defendant doesn’t follow their court-ordered treatment plan, the court still has the option of assessing jail time and fines.

Judge Hill said two staff members have been hired using federal grant funding to get the drug court up and running as a pilot program over four years. However, fine-tuning the court to get the desired result will take time as the court, prosecutor’s and public defender’s offices establish criteria for which cases are referred to the new program. It’s all about finding best practices and doing the right thing for the residents of the county.

“There are success stories out of other drug courts that are in other counties,” McCrae said. “And that’s what we want to replicate. We’re looking, obviously, at other counties and other drug courts to not have to reinvent the wheel and get the best of all worlds.”

Part of ensuring the success of the drug court will be establishing some best practices. One factor the U.S. Department of Justice has noted as a key to a successful drug court is ensuring that defendants work with one judge. Having a consistent person on the bench keeps the judge invested in the case, Director Hill said.

“When you’re switching (judges) around all the time, it becomes more sterile, which sort of defeats the point of everybody getting involved and helping somebody,” Director Hill said.

While the initial cost of the program is being primarily borne under federal grants, there is an opportunity for Grant County to see savings over time. According to the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs, there are more than 3,500 drug courts in operation across the nation. One of those drug courts in Oregon’s Multnomah County, the second oldest drug court in the country, saw cost benefits from the program.

A 30-month DOJ study showed that Multnomah County saved more than $5,000 per drug court participant for a total savings of more than $1.5 million. At the time of the study, the county saw about 300 cases annually. Overall costs were negligible to implement and operate the program in comparison to the savings seen, the study said.

For the initial four-year term of the court, Grant County has received about $400,000 from the federal government, Judge Hill said. He added that the Grant County Board of Commissioners had voiced strong support for the program and said they would ensure the county’s budget filled any minor funding gaps the program sees.

Director Hill said that, for him and his staff the main point is helping their clients get their lives back on track so they can move forward and live a substance abuse-free, productive life.

“And then they’re paying taxes, and they’re working and contributing and going down that road,” Director Hill said.

R. Hans Miller can be reached via email at rmiller@columbiabasinherald.com.