Drug treatment courts' future up in air

Police, opposition MPs and others are calling on the federal government to commit to long-term, stable funding for Canada's drug treatment courts — a pilot program that offers an alternative to prison for people accused of non-violent, drug-related crimes.

In six cities — Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Regina — potential participants have to plead guilty and promise to get clean to qualify for drug treatment courts.

Supporters call it one of the best programs in the justice system, offering an innovative way to turn drug-addicted criminals into healthy, responsible citizens.

Others call it an expensive and unsuccessful experiment.

'If you get somebody off the streets, you get them housed, you get them into a tax-paying member of society, this is an incredible savings.' —Ottawa police Const. John Gibbons

In Edmonton, Judge Darlene Wong has watched 20 people graduate from the program.

The successes can't be ignored, especially those who have had babies since the drug treatment courts started, Wong said.

"These are drug-free, healthy babies," Wong said. "They are with their moms or dads or, in some cases, both partners. If these babies had been born outside the program, I think the social costs would have been absolutely enormous."

The program initially sounded like a "Get Out of Jail Free" card to Pamela Spurvey, until she went through the barrage of weekly urine tests, medical appointments, Narcotics Anonymous meetings and classes on parenting and criminal addictive behaviour.

When she started the program two years ago, the 38-year-old mother of five — a former drug dealer and thief — was pregnant with her youngest son and addicted to crack, cocaine, methamphetamine and alcohol.

Spurvey is now clean and sober, with her own home and children back.

Before treatment, "most of my time was filled with … what can I use, what can I steal, what can I do to get high? That was my thoughts all day," Spurvey recalled.

"Today it's OK. It's everyday stuff, and I'm starting to enjoy it, you know. But it took a while to get used to. It felt boring for a long time."

The federal government spends $3.4 million a year on Canada's six drug treatment courts. Seven other communities, including Sudbury, Ont., Hamilton and Halifax, want to introduce similar programs.

Costs debated

In Edmonton, which has the highest graduation rate at 32 per cent, staff attribute their success to the practice of offering second chances.

"I think it's about $110 per day to keep a person in custody," said Doug Brady, who spent 30 years as a probation officer and prison guard before becoming the executive director of Edmonton's drug treatment court.

"For us, it costs $41 per day."

At 17 per cent, Vancouver has the fewest graduates. Participants who quit, lie to staff, break curfew or continue to use drug go back in jail.

The drug courts are more popular than effective, said Dr. Thomas Kerr, who co-wrote a study on the courts two years ago for the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS.

Addiction is a medical problem, not a criminal issue, Kerr said.

"Basically, we're just prolonging their exposure to the criminal justice system. They go through a drug treatment court process and then, after failing, they just get returned to the criminal justice system anyway. So really we're just prolonging things and jacking up the costs."

But for the 20 to 30 per cent of people who make it through the program, it's well worth it, said John Gibbons, a constable with the Ottawa police.

"At the end of the day, the program is going to save money," said Gibbons. "If you get somebody off the streets, you get them housed, you get them into a tax-paying member of society, this is an incredible savings."

Funding decision to come

Federal funding for the six drug courts runs out in one year, which is how long it takes most people to get through the program. Staff will soon have to decide whether to accept more clients.

Federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said drug courts seem to work well, but he refused to commit to funding beyond March 2010.

"Well, the future is there for the next year and, of course, we're having a look at it."

The Liberal party's justice critic, Dominic LeBlanc, said the right thing to do is to commit to long-term stable funding.

"I think at their core, they (the Conservatives) don't like these drug treatment courts," said LeBlanc. "They want to incarcerate people in jails for longer sentences."

The Justice Department is reviewing Canada's drug courts and is expected to make a funding decision this summer.