52/3 District Court, in Rochester Hills, held their first Sobriety Court graduation last Thursday, honoring eight graduates of the program.
The inaugural class included one graduate from Lake Orion and two other current participants are also from Orion.
‘We are very proud of our first Sobriety Court graduating class,? Judge Julie Nicholson. ‘The participants have worked extremely hard to pay their debt to society and to commit themselves to a healthy, sober lifestyle, which benefits the entire community.?
‘The success of the participants is also due in part to those that help us with this program, including the police departments, the prosecutors, defense attorneys, treatment providers, local businesses and the faith based community,? Nicholson added.
The program began in April of 2006 and is a special, non-adversarial court docket designed to offer immediate treatment to a non-violent offender for substance abuse.
For those 17 and older with multiple alcohol or drug related convictions and no prior convictions of violent crimes, the judge, with the offender’s agreement, can sentence the offender to Sobriety Court.
Sobriety Court is a collaborative effort among several individuals. The team consists of the judge, prosecutor, defense attorney, probation officer, a treatment specialist, an evaluation specialist and the coordinator.
‘We believe that the program will result in less recidivism, decrease in jail overcrowding and an eventual savings to the taxpayers of the community,? Nicholson said.
‘It is also rewarding as a judge to see defendants succeed in a positive manner and become productive members of society.?
Sobriety Court is an 18-24 month program, consisting of three phases with various requirements (i.e. treatment, testing, AA, community service work, random home visits, etc). As a participant successfully progresses through the phases toward graduation, some requirements may become less intense.
Current 52/3 District Court Judges Nicholson, Nancy Carniak and Lisa Asadoorian said the goal of the program is to reduce repeat offenders and promote a healthy lifestyle. They said an offender’s voluntary agreement to enter this program is a good first step toward a clean and sober life.
The program currently has 23 members. 52/3 District Court serves Rochester Hills, Rochester, Auburn Hills, Oakland, Orion, Oxford, Lake Angelus and Leonard.