Pubdate: Tue, 25 Jul 2006
Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright: 2006 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact:  http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/82
Authors: Johnathon E. Briggs and Gary Washburn, Tribune Staff Writers
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?136 (Methadone)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

BETTER AID URGED FOR JAILED ADDICTS

Pilot Program Trains Judges Who Order Drug Treatment

In its first report focused on improving treatment for drug addicts 
in the criminal justice system, the National Institute on Drug Abuse 
released 13 research-based guidelines Monday that the agency contends 
can reduce crime and save money and lives.

The criminal justice community must understand that drug addiction is 
a brain disease that affects behavior, requiring personalized 
treatment (including medications such as methadone) and ongoing care 
after incarceration, according to the government agency's report, 
"Principles of Drug Abuse Treatment for Criminal Justice Populations."

"This is an issue that affects every family in America," said Mayor 
Richard Daley, who appeared with agency director Nora Volkow and 
other officials at a news conference on the Near South Side. "It is 
on everyone's doorstep."

Agency officials released the report in Chicago to highlight a pilot 
program that trains Cook County judges on the neuroscience of 
addiction and treatment. The agency's program should help judges 
place addicted defendants in appropriate treatment.

Volkow said that the report summarizes findings from three decades of research.

In a 2002 survey of the nation's jails, the Bureau of Justice 
Statistics found that 52 percent of incarcerated women and 44 percent 
of men met the criteria for alcohol or drug dependence. Yet a 1997 
bureau survey showed that fewer than 15 percent of incarcerated 
offenders with drug problems had received treatment in prison.

The estimated cost to the U.S. for drug crimes is $107 billion annually.

Court-ordered treatment can help, but long-term changes require 
treatment longer than 90 days, the report concludes.

"This supports what we've been experiencing on a street level. We 
understand that incarceration [alone] does not heal addiction," said 
Rev. Patricia Watkins, executive director of the Target Area 
Development Corp., a faith-based non-profit in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman