A special drug court is to be established on a pilot basis in Dublin to deal with drug abusers by offering them supervised treatment and rehabilitation instead of sending them to prison.
The initiative was announced yesterday by the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, who said the scheme would be extended nationwide if it was successful.
The drug court, which will operate on a pilot basis over an 18-month period in the north inner city, will be available on a voluntary basis to non-violent offenders over the age of 17 who plead guilty or are convicted in the District Court of a drug or drug-related offence that would ordinarily warrant imprisonment. It will deal with a maximum of 100 offenders at one time.
Its primary aim will be to reduce crime through rehabilitation. Many drug users are repeat offenders, but if they receive treatment this cycle of crime could be broken.
An offender, having expressed a wish to be admitted to the drug court, will be assessed for suitability. The assessment, including if necessary uranalysis, will be carried out promptly by a court probation officer in consultation with the treatment providers.
If accepted, the offender will be required to enter a special drug court bail bond which will set out terms of treatment which must be adhered to. Comprehensive treatment programmes will be devised by a multi-disciplinary team to suit each offender's requirements. The team will be led by professionals from the local health board, with follow-up involvement from FAS, the Department of Education and the Probation and Welfare Service.
The establishment of the pilot project is one of the key recommendations of the Drug Court Planning Committee, set up in February 1999 and chaired by District Court Judge Desmond Hogan. Its first report was published yesterday.
The report warns that the drug court will only be as strong and successful as the resources provided to it. "If it is to be expanded and extended, considerable investment by the Government in the agencies and service providers to meet the service demands of an extended programme will be called for," it stated.
"Even a successful drug court cannot, in isolation, eradicate or expect to dramatically reduce drug misuse and its related crime. It is an incontrovertible fact, particularly in the Dublin area, that social exclusion, poverty, unemployment, lack of adequate recreational and other facilities, and other deprivation are prime driving factors in drug misuse and criminal behaviour.
"The ultimate success of an overall anti-drug strategy will depend greatly on the extent to which resources are made available by Government to address these difficulties and all the relevant agencies must work in partnership with or alongside the drug court and treatment services if any substantial long-term benefits are to accrue," the report added.