West Virginia’s
Drug Courts:
An Overview
Division of Probation Services, 2012
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Drug Courts Defined

Best understood as a diversion into a judicially
managed treatment program with intensive
supervision of participants by Probation, Treatment
and Law Enforcement professionals.

Both Juvenile and Adult Programs are available in
various West Virginia Courts.

Both the Juvenile and Adult Programs are
administrated by the West Virginia Division of
Probation Services.
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Statutory Framework
 Adult

Drug Court Statute:
West Virginia Drug Offender Accountability
& Treatment Act, W. Va. Code §62-15-1, et
seq.
 Juvenile

Drug Court Statute:
W. Va. Code, §49-5-2b
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Key Features of Adult Drug
Courts

Adult Drug Courts are intended to address addiction, and thus seek
as participants offenders who are both high risk (of future offenses)
and high need (severity of substance problem).

Governed by the 10 Key Components.

Key Team members are the ADC Judge, the Prosecutor, the ADC
Probation Officer and Treatment professionals.

As of June 30, 2012, there are 340 active ADC Participants among
15 operating circuit court programs.

4 additional ADC programs are in the planning stage and will begin
operations within the current fiscal year.
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Key Features of Juvenile Drug
Courts

Juvenile Drug Courts, in addition to the obvious difference of being
directed at a younger target offender, also are an attempt at early
intervention and therefore are directed at participants with a
substance abuse problem, rather than an addiction.

JDC’s are governed by the 16 Strategies.

Key team members are the JDC Judge, the JDC Probation Officer
and Treatment professionals. The Prosecutor remains a member of
the team, but does not have as authoritative a role in JDC.

As of June 30, 2012, there are103 active JDC clients among 11
operating programs.

As of July, 2012, there are12 operating programs, with 3 in the
planning stage that will open in the next 60-90 days.
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Adult Drug Court Outcomes

Lower costs: Compared to traditional criminal justice system, Adult
Drug Court processing, treatment and other investment costs
averaged $1,392.00 lower per drug court participant nationally.
Also on a national basis, reduced recidivism and other long-term
program outcomes resulted in public savings of $6,744 on average
per participant (or $12,218 if victimization costs are included).

Lower recidivism: Data are still being collected, but one 2002 study
in Florida found that within a two-year follow-up period, the felony
re-arrest rate decreased from 40 percent before the drug court to
12 percent after the drug court started in one county, and the
felony re-arrest rate decreased from 50 percent to 35 percent in
another county. (The West Virginia ADC program has not yet
provided sufficient data to evaluate).

The best available data show that drug courts do a better job for
less money.
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Juvenile Drug Court Outcomes

“Lower rates of substance use and delinquency for the JDC
participants as compared to the family court” and “JDC
participants not only recidivated at a substantially lower rate, but
they also served significantly less time in secure juvenile detention
and residential facilities” Painting the Current Picture: A National
Report Card on Drug Courts, NDCI – July 2011

93.1% of West Virginia JDC graduates did NOT reoffend in the
juvenile system

JDC community-based intensive supervision and outpatient
treatment is approximately an 8-month program and costs an
average of $6,403 per graduating youth

The alternative treatment for juveniles with substance abuse issues is
a 6-month minimum in-patient treatment program which can cost
between $44,100 to $99,000 per youth.
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Evidence-Based Practices:
Substance Abuse & Addiction
Treatment
In the context of providing treatment to
participants for their substance abuse &
addiction issues, the West Virginia Drug Courts
use a treatment model that strives to
incorporate evidence –based treatments
such as

Moral Reconation Therapy,
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MATRIX Model, and

Multi-Systemic Therapy
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Challenges to Drug Courts

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Treatment Providers & Resources
Drug Testing (Especially Synthetics)
Regulatory Compliance (Especially
Confidentiality)
Funding
Logistic barriers to providing access to rural
populations
Maintaining program integrity & training
Education of community, especially criminal
justice and treatment professionals
Aftercare services
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42 CFR Part 2

The most significant legal authority governing confidentiality in drug
courts is set forth in the Federal Regulations at 42 CFR Part 2

These regulations were adopted to protect the confidentiality of
Alcohol and Substance Abuse Treatment records

Covered information acquired by affected programs is
confidential, subject to exceptions set forth in the statute and
accompanying regulations

Treatment information is defined as all records and information
relating to “the identity, diagnosis, prognosis, or treatment of any
patient” in a substance abuse program
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Permissible Disclosures Under
42 CFR Part 2

While information defined as confidential by these regulations may be
communicated as needed within the Drug Courts, disclosure outside the Drug
Courts may only occur in the following situations:
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With the voluntary and informed written consent of the participant
In response to a valid Court Order
To medical personnel to the extent necessary to meet a bona fide medical
emergency
Also, information that does not disclose a participant’s identity may be shared
with qualified personnel for the purpose of conducting scientific research,
management audits, financial audits, or program evaluation
Additionally, disclosures may be made without consent in the course of a
medical emergency, in order to report crimes on the premises or crimes against
the Drug Court staff.
Disclosures must be made when necessary to comply with state child or elder
abuse laws, state laws relating to cause of death, and when necessary to meet
a duty to protect others (i.e., to warn of imminent, serious harm).
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Identifying confidential
information & Documents

Confidential information is information that sets forth:
 The identity of a patient in a substance abuse program
 The diagnosis of a patient in a substance abuse program
 The prognosis of a patient in a substance abuse program
 The treatment of a patient in a substance abuse program

Examples would include any information or records:
 Identifying someone as a Drug Court participant
 Setting forth drug testing results
 Providing notes or records from therapy
 Noting sanctionable activities
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Contact Information

Mike Lacy
Director
Division of Probation Services
Phone: 304-558-0145
E-Mail: Mike.Lacy@courtswv.gov

Lora Maynard
Deputy Director for Drug Courts
Division of Probation Services
Phone: 304-558-0145
E-Mail: Lora.Maynard@courtswv.gov
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Rob McKinney
Counsel
Division of Probation Services
Phone: 304-558-6844
E-Mail: Robert.McKinney@courtswv.gov