University faculty and students have expressed enthusiasm and some doubts regarding the details for proposed justice system reforms.
Last week, Gov. Bobby Jindal presented three pieces of legislation regarding Louisiana’s criminal justice system. According to Jindal’s news release, one bill plans to grow the state’s Drug Court program for adults and juveniles and to give early release to nonviolent first- and second-time drug offenders if they complete a detox program.
Professor of research and director of the office of Social Service Research and Development Cecile Guin said the detox is a medical process for those who are addicted to get off of illegal drugs.
Guin said the process is effective and necessary, but an expensive method.
“I’d like to know who is going to pay for it,” Guin said.
Associate professor in the School of Social Work Juan J. Barthelemy said incarceration often has more negative effects.
“The likelihood of someone being incarcerated again is increased once they have been in the system,” Barthelemy said. “If you incarcerate someone, you decrease their chances of them productively participating in society.”
Guin said other states have been reducing costs by reducing incarceration and targeting specific problems like mental illness and substance abuse.
“Treatment and keeping someone out of the jail is the cheapest solution to the program,” Guin said. “Drug court programs are very effective and always have been.”
Barthelemy regarded the first- and second-time offender and drug courts as a type of effective prevention to greater problems.
“If we are able to allocate resources on prevention as opposed to intervention, you spend a lot less money on the front end than what you would on the back end,” Barthelemy said.
In a drug court, an offender has a brief screening where a professional diagnoses his or her problem, someone would develop a case plan for him or her and then the drug court offender meets with a judge regularly depending on the plan, Guin said.
“It is very effective for drug offenders, instead of sending them to jail. You deal with their problems in a progressive manner,” Guin said.
Guin said the main problem is paying for these programs, while Barthelemy said the legislation has a hole. He questioned if someone was arrested and completed treatment if their arrest record would remain on their record.
“There is no indication that there is any money to put into this,” Guin said. “The Department of Corrections has to spend the money, and it’s better equipped to provide mental and substance abuse care inside the parish, but the local programs are just in lack of money.”
Chemical engineering sophomore Wyatt Ferguson agreed with the potential legislation.
“Turn ‘em loose. It would save the government a lot of money. If you put all the money you save and give it to education, you can save the state a lot of money,” Ferguson said.
In regard to younger adults with first- and second-time drug offenses, Barthelemy said the legislation will help law enforcement ensure the offenders complete the program and help young people get their lives on track.
Guin said most research shows the adult brain isn’t developed until age 25, so while college-age offenders are legally adults, they are not psychologically developed and this early on, “anything is better than jail.”
Ferguson said law enforcement should change its strategies and give tickets instead of arresting first-time offenders.
“They should start giving tickets because police officers have a lot of bigger crimes in this area to worry about,” Ferguson said.
He said he knows several students who would benefit from an early release policy.
“Treatment and keeping someone out of the jail is the cheapest solution the program,”
