Nebraska has come a long way in just a few years in helping nonviolent offenders, particularly in the area of drug courts. The idea of diverting relatively minor drug culprits from the state's crowded prisons and toward possible rehabilitation has proven good for all involved.
Drug courts specialize in low-level drug offenders. They use intensive judicial supervision of drug offenders combined with mandatory drug testing and oversight. Treatment is required, as is probation.
Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., has received some rightful acclaim on Capitol Hill for his hard work that was instrumental in increasing federal funding for drug courts.
In Nebraska, of course, many people had a hand in making drug courts work well — judges, prosecutors, defense lawyers, drug counselors and key legislators including former Sen. Kermit Brashear. As speaker in 2003, he pushed for landmark community corrections legislation.
Earlier this year, the Platte Institute reported that since drug courts were introduced in Nebraska, the recidivism rate for those who go through the program has declined sharply. The typical rate for re-offenders is 48 percent. But the rate for those who went through the drug court system is between 4 percent and 29 percent.
The drug court system not only saves Nebraskans money, it helps offenders change their lives. It doesn't focus only on drug problems but helps offenders with employment and family problems, too.
Nelson has talked about attending drug court graduations and speaking with people who had completed the program. "I've had one of them say as plainly as possible, 'I'm no longer ashamed of who I am and my family is no longer ashamed of me,' " he said.
The senator said that, while he wants to reduce spending, drug courts can save states money in important areas. The fact that it means fewer people must be imprisoned saves Nebraska money, as does a smaller number of repeat offenders.
Hundreds of men and women around the state have benefited from drug courts; 12 adult drug courts, five juvenile drug courts, five family dependency drug courts, one DUI court and one young adult court handle drug offenders across Nebraska.
Drug courts have worked so far for Nebraska. Their future looks bright — and so do the futures of the drug culprits they help.
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