County treatment courts receives grants to continue

The Hill County Drug Court has been awarded a $300,000 federal grant that ensures the treatment program’s continuation for another three years.

The grant comes from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Adult Drug Court Discretionary Grant Program. Funding for the treatment court program was set to expire in October.

Drug Court Coordinator Paul Nugent said the grant coming just in the nick of time is a relief.

“At the end of September, we were going to be without a major part of our funding,” Nugent said.

Although the program receives money from participants, the program is still not self-sufficient. But self-sufficiency is the goal, Nugent said, adding that he hopes that in three years that will be the case.

The grant money will go toward things like transportation costs, wages — the only people on the large drug court panel that receive wages are Nugent and Misdemeanor Compliance Officer Shane Huston — office equipment and drug and alcohol testing equipment.

The county DUI Court Treatment program also received a grant early in August. The $83,000 grant is from the Department of Transportation and will keep the program going for another year. The DUI program has been refunded annually for the last three years.

Drug and DUI courts began in Florida in 1989 as programs intended to reduce the backlog of drug-related court cases, recidivism and substance abuse among participants.

The programs offer tailored help intended to address the addiction at its core and has the teeth of the judicial system ready to nip at the participants should they stop moving forward. The courts keep participants busy with counseling and work appointments and drug tests and other requirements of the sort. Drug courts keep addicts in treatment for long periods of time, up to three years, and supervise them closely while in the program.

Drug Court Judge Audrey Barger has said that because the programs address the underlying issues that drive people to substance abuse, they are more likely to prevent relapse, therefore saving the community and the Department of Corrections more resources.