Doj Awards $25 Million To Communities For Drug Courts
Awards of more than $25 million to plan, establish, or improve drug courts for nonviolent, substance-abusing adult and juvenile offenders have been announced by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Drug court grants, administered by the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), are part of the Administration’s effort to stop drug addiction and break the cycle of crime often associated with substance abuse.
Drug courts provide intensive continuous judicial supervision and a coordinated and supervised delivery of a wide range of support services, such as substance abuse treatment, mental health services, and education.
Participants must regularly appear in court before specially-trained judges for treatment and drug court terms and conditions compliance review. If a participant violates the terms of the court, he or she may be immediately detained and brought before the drug court judge where graduated sanctions, including incarceration, may be imposed.
The funding supports the implementation and enhancement of adult and juvenile drug courts in local jurisdictions and state agencies, and is administered by OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP).
Implementation grants are awarded to jurisdictions that have completed planning and are ready to implement a drug court.
Enhancement grants are available to jurisdictions with fully-operational drug courts that intend to improve service delivery.
The grants are also available to state agencies-such as a state’s administering agency, an administrative office of the court, or alcohol and drug abuse agency-to establish evaluation and automated data-collection system initiatives or to provide statewide training or other assistance.
States, state and local courts, local governments, and Indian tribal governments are eligible to receive drug court grants.
