‘You wonder why somebody wouldn’t see the obvious fiscal sense of supporting a drug court program’
The province has renewed support for a local drug treatment court kicking in $516300 in funding from the Alberta Safe Communities Initiative.
The pilot program aims to rehabilitate “non-violent substance-abusing offenders” through a series of court-ordered steps.
Eligible offenders are required to undergo individual and group therapy sessions regular drug testing as well as weekly appearances before a judge for up to two years.
The program is limited to non-violent offenders who are addicted to cocaine heroin or crystal meth. Seven people have completed the rehabilitation program since 2008 and another six to eight are set to graduate this May.
The court has received more than $1.4 million in provincial funding over the past three years — cheaper and more effective than incarceration says the drug court’s executive director.
“For every dollar invested in our drug court program there is a bare minimum return of $4 in terms of what is saved in policing and incarceration costs” says Linda Edney.
It costs up to $90000 a year to jail a person in a federal prison. “You wonder why somebody wouldn’t see the obvious fiscal sense of supporting a drug court program” says Edney.
