|
|
|
DUI Court
Challenges
The benefits of expanding the scope of
drug courts to include DUI cases are clear. The traditional system
is a setup for failure when it comes to adjudicating the cases of multiple
DUI offenders. When levied, punishment can be severe, but the
adversarial process is counterproductive and can limit the accountability
of defendants. These defendants are left with inadequate sanctions,
limited (or no) treatment or rehabilitation, and little incentive to
change. The practitioners in the courtroom derive little
satisfaction from their jobs, and have limited opportunity to develop
comprehensive expertise in the DUI field.
The drug court model, as applied to DUI
cases, is an opportunity to take a proactive approach to justice. It
can free traditional courts to concentrate on other cases and close the
"revolving door" of a criminal justice system dominated by
substance-abusing repeat offenders. It offers practitioners the
opportunity to reach more offenders with a program that combines
accountability with the hope for change, and the chance to develop
specialized knowledge in a specific area of the law. It can provide
DUI defendants with the treatment and close supervision that chronic
offenders need, and still hold them accountable for their actions.
The need for a DUI/Drug Court system is
apparent, as are the advantages the system would offer. Several
obstacles, however, lie in the path that leads from the conventional DUI
court system to the DUI/Drug Court model. Removal of these obstacles
will require meeting challenges in several areas. Among them are the
following:
- Education and Recruitment.
Little information and few educational resources are available to
judges and other practitioners on the subject of DUI/Drug Courts, and
sitting on the bench of any DUI court, regardless of structure, is not
perceived as either a prestige position or a career builder.
Attracting qualified practitioners to DUI court - on either side of
the bench - calls for 1) a solid education program and 2) raising the
level of satisfaction that comes from being a part of the system.
- Funding. As always,
funding is scarce, and competition for dollars can prevent agencies
from working together toward a common goal. Some jurisdictions
have been innovative in finding new funding sources; for instance, one
jurisdiction imposed a tax on liquor to fund its program. The
offenders themselves are also a valid source of program financial
support.
- The "Soft on Crime"
Perception. This perception is difficult to fight, and
will require a concentrated, careful, and enduring public education
effort.
- The Scope of the Need. To
date, specialized DUI courts touch only a tiny percentage of those
offenders who could benefit from the drug court model. The scope
of the need for this model is vast. Once a jurisdiction commits
to a program, it will face major challenges to finding adequate
funding and qualified practitioners to support it. It will also
need to make difficult decisions about who to help, and who to turn
away.
- Existing DUI Courts.
DUI courts already exist in nearly every jurisdiction in the nation.
The vast majority, however, take a "traffic court" approach
to adjudication. Accountability is not necessarily a critical
component of these courts, and they bear no resemblance to the drug
court model. A need exists to inventory and map all existing
programs, to determine what is, and is not, working, and to set
standards for accountability, effectiveness, and coordination among
existing DUI courts.
- Need for a National Strategy.
No DUI/Drug Court national strategy exists today. Such a
strategy is needed in order to increase awareness and convince the
public that the drug court model can work for DUI offenders.
- Delay Syndrome.
Delay tactics are commonly believed to inure to the benefit of a
defendant in criminal cases. In DUI cases, however, delay
tactics and an adversarial defense can result in a defendant not
getting the quality of treatment and supervision required for
rehabilitation and real change. There is a need for consistency
in DUI justice and for incentives to proceed without delay.
Home
Page DUI
Courts News Why
DUI Courts? DUI
Court Mission
Drug Court Model
Comparison
Challenges
Strategy
Butte County Revia
Project DUI
Court Links
This web
page was created by the American
Council on Alcoholism
to serve as a resource for information about DUI courts.
This page was last updated on 4-30-2003.
|
