The Verdict Is In- Drug Courts Work!
July 21, 2008
July 9, 2008
The Verdict Is In- Drug Courts Work
Published July 9, 2008
Dawson News & Advertiser
http://www.dawsonadvertiser.com/news/
Over 500 attendees, from over sixty statewide Drug, DUI and Mental Health Court Teams, will hear the results of new scientific research that proves beyond a reasonable doubt that statewide Drug, DUI, and Mental Health Court Conference, hosted by the Judicial Council of Georgia’s Standing Committee on Drug Courts. The conference, entitled “Foundations for the Future,” will be held at the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center in Peachtree City, Georgia from June 17-19, 2008.
Drug, DUI and Mental Health Courts, also known as Accountability Courts, provide a successful and cost effective way of dealing with persons with offense related to their drug addiction or mental illness. “These courts have the support of judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officials around the State because they all know that they work, and they work at a fraction of the cost of incarceration,” said Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears. According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, the average cost of incarceration per offender/per year at close security prisons is $14,476, while the average cost incarceration per offender at close security prisons is $18,332. The cost of Accountability Courts per offender/ per year is $4,935; proof that these courts save taxpayer dollars.
“The Statewide Drug, DUI and Mental Health Court Conference provides an opportunity for professionals, officials and others in the community to come together and share lessons learned in everyday practice,” said Cobb County Superior Court Judge George Kreeger, who also serves as Chair of the Judicial Council Standing Committee on Drug Courts. Those attending will include drug court teams of judges, prosecutors, public defenders, treatment providers, probation and law enforcement officers and other dedicated criminal justice practitioners.
Conference highlights include:
Tuesday, June 17 at 9:45 a.m. — Drug Court Graduate Panel. A panel of drug court graduates will speak about their experience, what drug court has done for them and their families, and what drug court means to the State of Georgia on Tuesday, June 17.
Thursday, June 19 at 8:30 a.m. — Dr. Doug Marlowe, J.D., Ph.D., is a Senior Scientific Consultant, Chief of Science, Policy & Law for the National Association of Drug Court Profession; and Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Dr. Marlowe will release new scientific research on the effectiveness of drug courts.
Participation in an Accountability Court program includes at a minimum, substances abuse or mental health treatment, judicial supervision every two weeks, random drug screens, home visits and services ranging as long as two years. Team members are quick to emphasize that the Drug, DUI and Mental Health Court programs are not a “soft on crime” alternative to incarceration.
The Judicial Council of Georgia has appointed the Standing Committee on Drug Courts to encourage and support the implementation of drug courts in all 49 Georgia Judicial Circuits. These courts have experienced phenomenal success and tremendous growth by reducing substance abuse, crime and recidivism.
For more information about the conference, please visit www.georgiacourts.org and click on “2008 Drug, DUI and Mental Health Conference.”
Georgia’s Tough New DUI Law Takes Effect July 1st!
July 1, 2008
Georgia’s Tough New DUI Law Takes Effect Julty 1st
For Immediate Release
July 1, 2008
For more information:
Jim Shuler, Public Affairs
404-656-6996
jshuler@gohs.ga.gov
(ATLANTA) This year the July 4th holiday falls on a Friday.. And for some, it’s just another summer six-pack tradition to kick-off an entire weekend celebrating the consumption of adult beverages. That means July 4th is the second most dangerous night of the year on our highways. Too many party-people decide to leave their designated drivers behind at the barbeque and a dozen Georgians will die in alcohol-related crashes during the July 4th weekend.
But as of July 1st, Georgia has a tough new DUI law on the books that Georgia’s DUI cops will be enforcing on the roads! And it’s here just in time to kick-off Georgia’s Operation Zero Tolerance statewide DUI crackdown.
During the 2008 legislative session the Georgia House and Senate passed House Bill 336, creating a felony-level DUI charge for those repeat offenders who’ve stacked up four drunk-driving convictions on their ten-year driving record rap-sheets. With this change in Georgia law, multiple DUI arrests can now lead to felony convictions against Georgia’s worst case high-risk violators.
Long-awaited by DUI crash victims and grieving family survivors, HB 336 is truly regarded as lifesaving DUI law for Georgia. “This landmark legislation carries heavier fines, mandatory offender evaluations and jail times, stricter probation, and longer community service penalties,” said Director Bob Dallas of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS). “It should make any responsible driver think twice before ever climbing behind the wheel while impaired.”
For the first time, Georgia’s new DUI Law requires first time offenders to undergo drug and alcohol evaluation. And if that evaluation deems necessary, the offenders must participate in strict, court-supervised substance-abuse treatment to decrease the likelihood of recurring offenses. (Under the old law, drug and alcohol evaluations were only required for second and subsequent offenses.) But when those DUI offenders have been convicted a fourth time, the law is designed for public safety priorities to kick-in with mandatory felony jail time for violators.
Even while it was still pending, this visionary legislation already had the endorsement of GOHS, MADD, and the State District Attorney’s Association. Bill sponsor, State Rep. Kevin Levitas (D-Atlanta) is himself a former prosecutor who perceived the random fatalities involving drunk drivers as more dangerous to the public and more frequent than the murder rate. “Sadly in murder cases, victims and perpetrators often know each other. But there is this randomness to DUI deaths where a car just suddenly crosses over lanes of highway and without warning kills someone on their way to church or school,” said Rep. Levitas.
“Until HB 336 was passed, even four-time shoplifting offenders were treated as felons under Georgia law, but a fourth-time DUI was still just a misdemeanor here,” said MADD-Georgia State Executive Director Denise Thames. “Georgia was one of only five states left with no DUI felony law. Now we have serious consequences for those repeat offenders. A third time DUI offender needs a tough message and it should include more than just a few days of jail time.”
“Few people realize there’s research that shows people drive drunk 87 times before being caught for one DUI,” said Rep. Kevin Levitas. “Just try to calculate in your head how many times these multiple offenders may have driven drunk before they were caught the fourth time and charged and convicted under the old law. It’s time we got their attention.”
Georgia’s new felony DUI law applies to offenses occurring on or after July 1, 2008. Under its provisions:
- First and Second DUI Convictions are treated as misdemeanors..
- Third DUI Convictions are treated as high and aggravated misdemeanors..
- Fourth or Subsequent Convictions committed within ten years are treated as felonies..
(PAGE TWO)
The following is a summary of HB 336 and not meant as a technical interpretation of the law. For a full reading of the actual statute see the OZT news conference feature on our website at www.gahighwaysafety.org
First Time DUI convictions carry these penalties:
- Fines ranging from $300.00 to $1,000.00
A period of imprisonment from ten days to 12 months (judge may probate all but 24 hours of jail time)
- A minimum of 40 hours of Community Service for DUI at .08 BAC or above/
Or a minimum of 20 hours of Community Service for DUI below .08 BAC
- Completion of a DUI Alcohol or Drug Use Risk Reduction Program
- A clinical evaluation and completion of any necessary treatment
- 12 months of probation, less any jail time served
Second Time DUI convictions carry these penalties:
- Fines ranging from $600.00 to $1,000.00
- A period of imprisonment from 90 days to 12 months (offender must serve 72 hours of actual jail time)
- A minimum of 30 days of Community Service
- Completion of a DUI Alcohol or Drug Risk Reduction Program
- A clinical evaluation and completion of any necessary treatment
- 12 months of probation, less any jail time served
Third Time DUI convictions carry these penalties:
- Fines ranging from $1,000.00 to $5,000.00
- Period of imprisonment from 120 days to 12 months (offender must serve 15 days of actual jail time)
- A minimum of 30 days of community service
- Completion of a DUI Alcohol or Drug Risk Reduction Program
- A clinical evaluation and completion of any necessary treatment
- 12 months of probation, less any jail time served
Fourth Time or subsequent DUI convictions carry these penalties:
- Fines ranging from $1,000.00 to $5,000.00
- A period of imprisonment from one to five years (offender must serve three months of actual jail time)
- A minimum of 60 days of Community Service
- Completion of a DUI Alcohol or Drug Risk Reduction Program
- A clinical evaluation and completion of any necessary treatment
- 5 years of probation, less any jail time served
The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is issuing this warning to party responsibly this July 4th holiday: During “OZT” police in Georgia will conduct major waves of concentrated patrols and sobriety checkpoints throughout the state from Friday, June 20, through Sunday, July 6, 2008 to protect innocent motorists and their families from DUI-drivers on our highways.
Whether meeting a few friends after work or traveling the holiday barbeque circuit, friends should never let friends drive drunk. Remember to designate a sober driver in advance – Before the July 4th festivities begin. What can you do to protect your family on the highway this holiday weekend? Your best protection against a deadly encounter with a drunk driver.. Is a buckled safety belt. So Buckle-up. Slow Down. Drive Sober.
