Virginia Drug Courts......


Comments

  1. The little clip in the beginning was kind of sad. Because she was only thinking about her kid. Then the police officer said the kid was going to social services. I can connect to that from my personal experiences as a child. So I can relate to and understand the stress and pressure put on the parents and child. I could not image how the police officer feels (if he/she had a heart). Knowing that because of your actions the parents will be removed from their children.
    -Ibanez789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As sad as it seems, I would think that in relation to the child, they have to appear cold-hearted. If that were me I would really have to hold back my anger towards the parent. But I’ve often wondered exactly how a police officer is able to do this. I would assume that they are either use to these situations or they really do have the power to detach themselves emotionally from it. Or they truly are thinking with their hearts and focusing on the future of the children they have to escort away from their families. - StrongArm789

      Delete
    2. Being a police officer is never going to be an easy job, especially with having to do that kind of arresting. That has to be one of the hardest parts emotionally about this line of work. But its that job that is signed up for and what has to be done for the future of the child and the parent. If they weren't arrested then who knows how much the life of the child and parent would be. Maybe it helped open up the eyes of parent even more because of the effects their actions had on the child that day. ICCRunner789

      Delete
    3. Hola Ibanez789: I too empathize with this woman. I don't think she thought nearly enough about her child though. Obviously she loves the high better. BUT. Since she is the United States she has the chance to rehabilitate herself while her children are taken care of in foster care. Foster cares main focus is returning children back to the care of their biological parents. After they are 'clean', counseled for domestic violence (insert something). This takes on average of what? 2 years? They take this time to detox, get their mind right, and bring back the child into a better environment. Where Mom isn't going to passed out on the couch for days on end. Taking a child from a parent is terrible but necessary sometimes in the society we live in. If I ever make it to L.E.O. status I will have no problem with removing a child, knowing there is a system to protect the child. DCFS had my houses address on a rolodex when I was child 0.0 Mad Respect. Doberman789

      Delete
  2. Drug courts, such as this one in Virginia, play a determining factor when helping addicts overcome their weaknesses. Family structures are broken and if addicts don’t have a family, then their social and economic relations slowly fall apart. The graduates here explain that they would do anything for their drugs; whether withdrawing money from a 401K or doing favors for people they know. The purpose of the drug court here seems to be to cut out many of the procedures by which standard court cases will go through, in order to quickly and efficiently return the individual back to be a ‘productive member of the community.’ The coordinators and judges seem to relate that the addicts have a disease to recognize so that they don’t have to waste any more of their lives, especially if children are involved. The graduates are also honest when they state that there would be no second guess in their mind that they wouldn’t still be using had they not been arrested. The psychological treatments and programs help with teaching the individual that the pain is not only theirs alone. If the pressure is too much and they relapse with a positive urinalysis, then probation will force them to start all over again. The treatment has the keys to help the individuals to return to their normal lives with a whole new purpose, which is admirable and respectable, even despite the situations which put them there to begin with. - StrongArm789

    ReplyDelete
  3. From the video it talks about what the good things this Virginia drug court has been doing; instead of arresting someone and have them go to jail or prison to serve their sentence they can go to this drug court and voluntarily go into their rehabilitation program for a set period of time. Not only does that really help the person who is in need of the help the drug courts can provide but it can also save a lot of money by helping them instead of incarcerating them. The video says that the cost of having someone stay in jail or prison was around twenty four thousand dollars a year, the flip side to this is if they go through the treatment in the drug courts it is about five thousand dollars a year. That extra money could go into doing other things in the community like to help with education, fix roads, or whatever else comes up the towns would have the money to fix it. That saves a lot of money and saves a lot of space for the already crowded corrections facilities. Birdman789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree with you on this being a good idea due to it helps people with their problem without sending them to prison. A lot of time the rehabilitation programs help people better because in rehab they actually help them with the problem in prison they don't really help them the just lock them up so then the can't get access to the drugs. It also saves a lot of money due to not having to pay the big cost for someone who is incarcerated. dragons789

      Delete
  4. My personally thoughts about this video is that this is someone a great idea. Because everyone deserves a second chance to redeem their-selves.I feel like just because you mad a few bad decisions in life,you shouldn't have to spend along time in prison.The 12 step program is a great opportunity and it also show the addicts that it people out there who still care about them and believe in them. It gives them hope and self-esteem.I think we should have that in illinois,it saves money from the state. Shaylavon789

    ReplyDelete
  5. This video shows you the reality of drug offenders. A lot of them have families and have good jobs. It's sad to see how many families get separated and kids get taken away because of drug problems. Also a lot of them have good careers and you would never expect it from them or from someone of their profession. In reality a lot people we would never expect have drug problems. I think the Virginia drug court is a good idea. It allows them to go to a rehabilitation program instead of going to prison. I think it makes a lot of them open their eyes and see that this is serious and what the consequences will be if they continue their drug use. It also saves a lot of money due to not having to pay the big cost of paying for someone who in incarcerated. But their will always be those few who continue with the drug use and end up in prison. I think we should develop more programs like this due to it helps allot of people without sending them to prison and also saves a lot of money. dragons789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is sad to see the reality of the drug problems these people faced in their life. On the bright side it is good to see that these people can get the rehabilitation that they need than just be incarcerated and in a facility until their time is up. I completely agree with you that having a drug court saves a lot of money. It costs a lot less that prison or jail and by doing so there won’t be overcrowding in these facilities so it also saves more money and headaches from that too. Birdman789

      Delete
    2. Its really sad to see these families torn apart because we see these people as criminals. The video even explained it that these drug users could easily be anyone that you know from the mother to the grocery store bagger to the CEO. Its crazy to think that we treat these people like hardcore criminals when they are just normal people with a couple problems but then again who doesn't have a couple problems we all do. Godzilla789

      Delete
  6. I found this video very interesting. It really shows you how drug courts are handled and how the offenders are feeling as they are going through all this. The video also explains that drug abuse is not just a one group of people thing there are tons of different types of people that use drugs. I don't really understand how these drug courts are helping these people though. Its kind of like they are thinking we should stop these people before they ruin their lives with drugs by ruining their life by sending them to jail. The lady in the video had a baby with her while she was being taken in by police. She also had work later that day. What would happen if she had gotten fired from her job because of the drug courts? I don't see these people as much as "criminals". I see them as people that just need a little help they need a different stress reliever besides drugs. Treating them as prisoners however is not the answer. Godzilla789

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm going to be honest when I first started watching this video I didn't expect all of those people to be drug addicts or have been drug addicts. I think that this is a very good thing to have around. I remember in the video someone in the video said that if they were in prison they would have gotten out and started doing drugs again. They said that the Virginia Drug Court did them the right way. I think that that is correct after this video. But my question is how many cases succeed compared to the unsuccessful cases. I almost feel like the the successful cases really out way in unsuccessful cases because in the video at the graduating ceremony there was several of people in that room at the graduation, if you want. So it seems to me that Drug Courts are a good thing and are working really well. After seeing how many people are coming back from it and even that one lady owns her own business. Not many drug addicts can say that they do that. A lawful one that is of course. ICCRunner789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had the exact same thoughts as you did when I was watching the video. I didn't think these people looked like former addicts to me either. I also wondered about how many people didn't pass the programs too. The video really only said the good things about the program and not any of the bad things. I do think that this is a good system and every court in every state should do this.

      CountryGirl789

      Delete
  8. I thought this video was great. I think every court in america and the world should be doing this. Not only did the people get clean, but they didn't start doing drugs again. When the drug courts offer rehabilitation, the user is less likely to use the drugs again which means they wouldn't get tied up in the corrections system again. This means there could be less crime in the community which makes it safer. I do wonder how many people didn't pass the rehab program though. I also wondered what the drawbacks of this program were. Was it more expensive? The video really only tells you the good things, but no the bad. Overall the drug courts in Virginia are doing a great job with rehabilitating the addicts instead of incarcerating them. This will really help the recidivism rate and the prison population over time.

    CountryGirl789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad that you mentioned that last part. I was also interested to know what the drawbacks of the drug courts were. You'd think that it would be more expensive, but at the same time you also have to think that if the rehabilitation is successful that's less people in prison for drug offenses, and less money being spent on housing them. I'm interested to watch the progression of the Virginia drug courts.
      -Leilani789

      Delete
  9. This video was really great. I think all the courts should take this step into helping people better their lives. Just because people start doing drugs does not make them a criminal. Like she said in the video there are people who do drugs, but then there are people who do drugs and commit crimes also. A drug addiction is a mental illness, a lot of people don't see it that way but it is. You cannot help a drug addiction it takes over your life. Drugs do not care what you look like. We should really help people try and get their lives but rather than locking them up for life and taking their life from them. Most people who use drugs I know will would want to turn their life around if you gave them the chance. -dicaprio789

    ReplyDelete
  10. I thought that this program was excellent. Rehabilitation should always be the goal that we strive for. If it is possible for rehabilitation then the opportunity should be given. I took the Mental Health First Aid course last semester and know that a drug addiction is a mental illness. Do we not try to help those with learning disabilities and ADHD? Or bipolar disorder? Granted the situations are much different, but they are both classified under mental illness. The drug courts in Virginia seem to be on the right track and I'm intrigued to see how they progress.
    -Leilani789

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love your response to this video! I agree with you 100% that rehabilitation should be the goal we strive for. I just took the Mental Health First Aid course this weekend and learned about substance use disorders and I thought about the same thing that you did. Substance use disorders are a disease and need to be treated the same way as any other mental illness or disease. Cards789

      Delete
    2. This video was extremely interesting and I personally think it is one of my favorites so far. I am a big believer in rehabilitation for people, especially when it comes to substance use disorders. It is important to allow people the opportunity to turn their life around and show people with substance use disorders how to live a life without the substance. I was slightly surprised by the seriousness of the drug court because the people who have gone through it admitted that if they were to have one positive drug test during the whole thing, they were going to have to restart the whole program. Another woman admitted to trying to get out of a drug test by stating she was out of town and getting arrested at her home the next day. I think that the punishment for trying to return to using the substances is key in helping people to recover from the substance abuse. If someone is never punished for going back to the substance, why would they not be inclined to go back to using? I was excited to see the success of the program, considering that 4,600 people have graduated from the Virginia drug court. I would like to see this type of program being implemented in more places across the country because I think it is very important to the criminal justice system. Another thing I liked about this program and one of the reasons I think it is successful is that they did not allow people to be in the program that had certain previous crimes or life experiences. For example, people who had previously been convicted certain types of crime, like distribution, were unable to be a part of the program. As I previously stated, considering all of these factors, I think that these type of drug courts should be implemented more. Cards789

      Delete
  11. Grab your detox poncho, turn off your cell phone off and stock up on pedialyte because we are all going to drug court! Everyone is on something: Caffeine, Mescaline, Chocolate, Horse, Nicotine, Tina. (do you see what I did there?). I once knew a gal who was functioning addict. Banging a handful of $10 bags of heroin a day. Her boyfriend got locked up, and she had to shoot herself up. Apparently she sucked at it BECAUSE one day at work she went into the bathroom to ‘ride the horse’ and OD’d in there. Yep, laying there on the floor with a needle in her arm. Luckily we drug (no pun intended) her out and gave her some Narcan, wallah! Like raising the dead sometimes. Shortly after she disappeared. I hope she got into a drug court, and is rehabilitated now. I mean come on, someone tell me why horse is cheaper than cigarettes? Anyone? Is it so when the people at the pain clinic can’t afford their prescribed opiates they can still live? Because the system has failed them they hit the streets to get the illegal form because their bodies are buckling. Insert fish hook. Little off topic, my bad. Drug addicts are not all crazy degenerate people who sell there bodies, babies, and birth certificates. They are people who have made a series of bad decisions. Once on that dark side not a whole lot will pull them back into the light. Not family, God, or fear of death. Drug court is like a loving disciplinary parent ☺ on rhoids. The idea of drug court fascinates me. My favorite guy on this video was Vinnie G. Dabney, MS this guy was on point. ‘Chartable course’, ‘a process’, ‘people go to prison to learn how to…..to commit more crime.’ I could watch a whole video with just this dude. The chartable course thing is very true. Using drug court as a detour from these courses is the key of this video I think. Drug court keeps the violator in the community. This puts less of a stress on the court system, and leaves the violators support system in tact during their time of supervision. In the video they talked of people being released from prison having to start all over again. This leads to problems of recidivism (after treatment and release ☺). To have an operational drug court in your county would be good for the local economy. Given that the cost of the positions could be absorbed without putting a strain on the budget. I could only imagine how many employment opportunities this creates outside of a traditional court system. I would apply for a position in a drug court. As stated in CRJ 114, they are ‘much less punitive’….’restorative in nature’. I would get up everyday with a smile on my face knowing I was making a difference. The last couple minutes of this video got me in the feels. “Decide, which voice in your head you can keep alive.” Shinedown. Doberman789

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog