OVERVIEW OF DRUG COURT

Drug courts are specialized court process for handling drug-related offenses.  Bingham County currently has a Drug Court for felony, misdemeanor and juvenile offenses.

The first drug court was established in Dade County, Florida, in 1989.  A group of concerned Miami leaders noticed the criminal justice system was unable to adequately address drug addiction or combat the crime that this problem causes.  Based on their successful efforts, Drug Court systems are being set up all across the nation.  The success of such programs compares to that of the pilot program in Florida.

A drug court emphasizes intensive monitoring of the participant and frequent court appearances for the purposes of providing constant and immediate accountability for the participant.  The court process differs significantly from the traditional court process.  In the traditional court process a defendant would be sentenced and given a list of probation conditions and guidelines, a probation officer would monitor compliance with these items, and the probationer would only be before the sentencing court if they violated the conditions sufficiently for the probation officer to believe some sanction needed to be imposed by the court.  Frequently, the response to a probation violation in the traditional court setting could take several weeks to several months after the violation occurred.  By way of contract, a Drug Court participant is constantly before the court during the term of their probation for status checks.  Furthermore, before each court session, the case is reviewed by the Drug Court team.  This team consists of the presiding judge, the probation officer, the treatment provider or providers (substance abuse treatment provider and/or mental health treatment provider), the prosecutor, the defense attorney, and any other people that are tied to the defendant's treatment program.  The treatment team discusses the progress of the participant and determines if rewards or sanctions should be imposed.  They then attempts to reach a consensus on what approach the judge should take with the participant, including a consensus on any rewards or sanctions which should be imposed.  The court appearance of the participant is held in open court with the other participants in the Drug Court present.

IDAHO DRUG COURT ACT

In 2000, the Idaho Legislature provided a statutory framework and special funding to increase the number of and effectiveness of drug courts in Idaho.  You can review the legislation by clicking this link to the Idaho Drug Court Act.

BINGHAM COUNTY STEERING COMMITTEE

In 1999 a steering committee was formed in Bingham County to assist in implementation of a successful Drug Court program in Bingham County.  The steering committee consists of numerous community members who dedicate their time, knowledge, and expertise to the Drug Court Programs.  Thanks to their efforts Bingham County had the first functioning juvenile drug court in the state of Idaho and the first functioning felony drug court in the Seventh Judicial District.

Steering Committee Members  (as of 11-27-01) 

Our community should appreciate the work and dedication of each of these people to making our drug court system work in Bingham County.  The prosecutor's office is sincerely grateful for all their hard work.  Bingham County's drug court programs would not have achieved the level of success that they have without these people's help.

FELONY AND MISDEMEANOR DRUG COURT PROCEDURES

The Felony and Misdemeanor Drug Courts have the same handbook which outlines the procedures and requirements of the Drug Court program.  You can read the handbook by clicking on this Felony/Misdemeanor Drug Court Handbook link.

JUVENILE DRUG COURT

You can read the participant handbook for Juvenile Drug Court by clicking on this Juvenile Drug Court Handbook link.

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