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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.C.R. NO.            
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE  CONCURRENT
                        RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE JUDICIARY TO STUDY THE FEASIBILITY OF
    ESTABLISHING A DRUG COURT IN HILO.


 1        WHEREAS, the number of drug courts nationwide, in both the
 2   planning and operational stages of development, has increased
 3   significantly; and
 4   
 5        WHEREAS, drug courts are now underway in forty-seven
 6   states, plus the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and
 7   two federal districts, including Drug Court planning in a
 8   number of Native American Tribal Courts; and
 9   
10        WHEREAS, Hawaii's Drug Court program has been extremely
11   successful since its inception in January, 1996; and
12   
13        WHEREAS, Hawaii's Drug Court program is a treatment-based
14   program run by the Judiciary that offers incentives for good
15   behavior and immediate sanctions for relapses with drug use;
16   and
17   
18        WHEREAS, the purpose of Hawaii's Drug Court is to divert
19   nonviolent pre-trial and post-conviction defendants from the
20   usual criminal justice process and incarceration, and place
21   them in a comprehensive, intensive treatment program with on-
22   going judicial supervision; and
23   
24        WHEREAS, under Hawaii's program, pre-trial defendants go
25   through a probationary treatment period that is tailored to
26   their specific rehabilitation needs, and must end their
27   substance abuse.  They receive counseling, life and social
28   skills, and enroll in school or find full-time employment; and
29   
30        WHEREAS, because Hawaii's Drug Court, as well as other
31   Drug Court programs, test defendants for drug use on a regular
32   basis, information regarding drug use by defendants under Drug
33   Court supervision is known to the court on an ongoing basis,
34   and is responded to with appropriate sanctions; and
35   

 
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                                  H.C.R. NO.            
                                                        
                                                        


 1        WHEREAS, as a result, drug use of participants in Drug
 2   Court programs is substantially reduced and significantly lower
 3   than that reported for non-Drug Court defendants, and
 4   recidivism rates are also substantially lower; and
 5   
 6        WHEREAS, most criminal justice system professionals
 7   estimate that at least forty-five per cent of defendants
 8   convicted of drug possession will recidivate with a similar
 9   offense within two to three years; and
10   
11        WHEREAS, in contrast, Drug Court programs are experiencing
12   a significant reduction in recidivism rates among participants.
13   The drastic reduction in drug use by Drug Court participants,
14   and the consequent criminal activity associated with drug use,
15   is confirmed by urinalysis reports for Drug Court defendants;
16   and
17   
18        WHEREAS, in addition, recognizing that substance addiction
19   is a chronic and recurring disorder, Drug Court programs
20   maintain continuous supervision over the recovery process of
21   each participant.  Drug usage or failure to comply with other
22   conditions of the program are detected and responded to
23   promptly; and
24   
25        WHEREAS, a basic premise of the Drug Court approach is
26   that cessation of drug abuse requires not only appropriate
27   treatment services but coordinated and comprehensive programs
28   of other rehabilitation services to address the underlying
29   personal problems of the drug user, to promote the user's long-
30   term reentry into society; and
31   
32        WHEREAS, drug courts are also extremely cost effective in
33   terms of reduced costs of incarceration, reduced police
34   overtime and other witness costs, and grand jury expenses.
35   Many unemployed participants who have entered drug programs
36   have become employed and self-supporting; and
37   
38        WHEREAS, many Drug Court participants are parents of minor
39   children, who have either lost or are in danger of losing
40   custody because of drug use.  Drug Court participation may
41   result in retaining or regaining custody upon completion; and
42   
43        WHEREAS, drug-free babies are more likely to be born to
44   female Drug Court participants while enrolled in Drug Court
45   programs, saving substantial medical and social service costs,
46   estimated at a minimum of $250,000 per baby, that are required
47   to care for a drug-addicted infant; and
48   

 
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                                  H.C.R. NO.            
                                                        
                                                        


 1        WHEREAS, additionally, Hawaii's and other states' Drug
 2   Court programs allow law enforcement agencies to allocate their
 3   criminal justice resources more efficiently.  Staff and
 4   services that had been consumed by the less serious but more
 5   time-consuming drug cases can now be targeted for more serious
 6   cases and those offenders who pose greater risks to community
 7   safety; and
 8   
 9        WHEREAS, there is an immediate need to expand Hawaii's
10   Drug Court program beyond the city and county of Honolulu to
11   address drug use in other areas of the State; and
12   
13        WHEREAS, establishing a Drug Court in Hilo would help to
14   address the growing number of substance abuse cases on the Big
15   Island, and the resulting increase in the number of detained
16   and incarcerated individuals with drug abuse problems, by
17   offering an alternative to incarceration for nonviolent drug-
18   abusing offenders; now, therefore,
19   
20        BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
21   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
22   of 2000, the Senate concurring, that the Judiciary is requested
23   to determine the feasibility of establishing a Drug Court in
24   Hilo; and
25   
26        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Judiciary is requested to
27   report its findings and recommendations, including any proposed
28   implementing legislation, to the Legislature no later than
29   twenty days before the convening of the Regular Session of
30   2001; and
31   
32        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
33   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chief Justice of
34   the Supreme Court, the presiding Judge of the Drug Court, the
35   Administrative Director of the Courts, and the Governor.
36 
37 
38 
39                           OFFERED BY: ___________________________