Success of Drug Court Programs

• Date: 01 September 2008
• Author: Lisa S. Nored,Philip E. Carlan
• DOI: 10.1177/0734016808322050
• Published date: 01 September 2008
• Subject Matter: Articles

Success of Drug Court Programs

Examination of the Perceptions of

Drug Court Personnel

Lisa S. Nored

Philip E. Carlan

University of Southern Mississippi

Literature indicates that drug courts produce lower recidivism rates, increased retention rates, and

lower costs than traditional criminal justice case processing. As drug courts approach their second

decade, there is a void in the literature regarding factors that influence the success of drug court

programs. This work aimed to fill that void by equipping policy makers with meaningful infor-

mation regarding (a) drug court success and (b) factors that facilitate and challenge the imple-

mentation of drug court programs. This study measured the perceptions of drug court judges and

administrators in five states to examine factors identified by respondents as key to program suc-

cess. Federal, state, and local factors (agencies and actors) influenced the success of drug court

programs, with state and local factors consistently identified as most supportive and influential.

Findings also indicated that perceived success was higher for drug court personnel (a) without

graduate and professional degrees (law) and (b) with more experience guiding drug courts.

Keywords: drug courts; implementation; public policy; drug offenders; drug treatment;

crime control policy

In the late 1980s, the nation was struggling with dramatic increases in crime and high incar-

ceration costs. Especially troubling was the continued and alarming increase in drug-related

crime. Although the link between drugs and crime has long been documented among criminal

justice professionals, national rates of drug-related crimes continued to escalate into the 1990s.

Following two decades of significant increase in drug-related crime, policy makers were in the

market for efficient and effective crime control strategies. Given the shift in American public

opinion toward crime and criminal offenders, especially those involved in the drug trade, politi-

cians were sensitive to the need for funding programs that guaranteed accountability, deter-

rence, and swift implementation. Gone were the days when officials could stress rehabilitation

and long-term strategies. The public wanted immediate intervention with swift consequences.

Drug courts seemed to offer a palatable alternative.

The first drug court program was created in Dade County, Florida, in 1989 (National

Criminal Justice Reference Service, 2005a, 2005b; Nolan, 2001; Roman, Butts, & Rebeck,

2004; Wiseman, 2005). The program was community based and stressed offender account-

ability with much of its costs offset by collection of participant fees. With the creation of this

unique alternative, the demands of the public, judiciary, policy makers, and federal authori-

ties were seemingly addressed in an effective and workable manner. The number of drug

courts has steadily increased over the past two decades. Currently, there are 1699 operational

drug courts in the United States and 349 in the planning stages. Drug court programs are also

329

Criminal Justice Review

Volume 33 Number 3

September 2008 329-342

© 2008 Georgia State University

Research Foundation, Inc.

10.1177/0734016808322050

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