Editorial: Drug Court at work for Nevada inmates

Friday, Dec. 21, 2001 | 10:03 a.m.

Earlier this week, three state prison inmates became the first graduates of a program that allows prisoners convicted of drug offenses to get an early release. Modeled after the successful program run locally by District Court Judge Jack Lehman, released inmates spend a year in intensive rehabilitation and counseling under a judge's supervision, a process that gives them a better chance at making a successful return to society.

Not everyone who has started the program has completed it, and those who have broken laws or violated the terms of their release are sent back to prison. But overall this is an excellent initiative in two ways: there is a cost savings -- it takes $20,000 to oversee one inmate in prison vs. the $1,500 cost of the Drug Court program -- and those in the program receive the kind of rehabilitation and counseling that currently isn't offered in state prison. The key is to make sure that inmates get back on the right track when they leave prison so they don't come back -- and the Drug Court program is a right step in that direction.