Program Profile: Guam Adult Drug Court

This is a drug court diversion program designed to help participants achieve sobriety and reduce involvement with the criminal justice system, by connecting them with treatment services soon after arrest. The program is rated Promising. The treatment group showed statistically significant reductions in recidivism for general and drug-related crime, compared with the control group at the 3-year follow up. However, there were no differences between groups in rates of positive drug tests.

A Promising rating implies that implementing the program may result in the intended outcome(s).

Program Goals/Eligibility

The Guam Adult Drug Court (GADC) is a drug court diversion program that has three main goals: to help participants become clean and sober, improve their lives, and reduce their involvement with the criminal justice system. The program focuses on getting participants into treatment as soon as possible after arrest.

To be eligible for the GADC program, a defendant must be at least 18 years of age; be a legal resident of the United States; have a means of transportation to get to the drug court program, treatment services, and other program activities; and show a measure of motivation for change. Eligible drug charges include felony possession and use of a controlled substance and felony driving under the influence. Defendants must demonstrate a drug use problem, and there can be no evidence of substantial drug dealing. Defendants cannot have a prior felony conviction or a pending felony charge of a violent and/or sex crime.

Most cases are referred by the attorney general and public defender immediately after the arrest, but potential participants can also be referred from the judge or the Department of Probation. Participants are admitted to GADC after they are screened for eligibility and suitability. Once admitted, participants are administered a clinical assessment to determine the extent of chemical dependency as well as mental status, which help to determine what services are necessary for treatment.

Program Theory

The GADC relies on the drug court model (see the National Association of Drug Court Professionals [1997] for the 10 key components of drug courts). In addition, the treatment providers rely on a treatment model that is adopted from a social cognitive–behavioral approach and a strengths-based multiagency approach, which can ensure participants’ compliance with program requirements. The materials and information used with participants during the therapeutic process are culturally sensitive to Guam’s multicultural background.

Program Components

The GADC is a deferred-plea program, which means that upon successfully completing the program, eligible charges are dismissed and the participant’s record is expunged. The program can be completed in 12 months (including 6 months of aftercare) but participants have up to 2 years to complete the program.

The GADC has four phases, each with corresponding treatment and probation requirements. The time spent in each phase depends on how quickly a participant can fulfill the requirements. Program requirements include attendance at weekly self-help groups, meetings with the case managers, attendance at family and individual counseling sessions, payment of fees, completion of community service hours, submission to random urinalyses each week, and participation in weekly or monthly drug court hearings. Other services provided by the program (though not required by participants) include employment skills training, education assistance, grief counseling, and family therapy. Participants also receive referrals for food stamps, welfare services, homeless shelters, mental health services, medical and dental services, anger management, and parenting classes.

Different criteria must be met to move from phase to phase. For example, to move from phase 1 to phase 2, a participant must have 5 clean drug tests, attend 20 group sessions, and spend at least 4 weeks in treatment. To move from phase 3 to the final phase, a participant must have 10 clean drug tests, attend 30 group sessions, and spend 10 weeks in treatment. The final phase includes aftercare and transition services that usually begin after completing 27 weeks of treatment and continues in intensity up until 36 weeks of treatment. After that, maintenance care is practiced at 6, 12, and 18 months following graduation from the program.

Key Personnel

The GADC team includes the judge, the drug court program coordinator, two case managers, a probation officer, treatment providers, the court psychologist, and representatives from the public defender and attorney general offices.

Study 1

Carey and Waller (2007) used a quasi-experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of the Guam Adult Drug Court (GADC) to reduce recidivism and levels of substance abuse. The treatment group was identified from a sample of participants who entered the GADC from the program’s implementation in August 2003 through August 2005. The comparison group consisted of people convicted of drug offenses who in the 2 years prior to GADC implementation had cases that would have been eligible for the drug court program had it existed at the time. The two groups were matched on variables, such as age, gender, ethnicity, marital status, number of dependents, and number of court cases filed in the 2 years prior to the date of the drug court–eligible case. The drug court group (n= 109) was 77 percent male, and 74 percent Chamorro (Guam native), 11 percent Filipino, 2 percent white, and 12 percent “other,” with an average age of 37 years. The comparison group (n= 112) was 78 percent male, and 75 percent Chamorro, 11 percent Filipino, 3 percent white, and 11 percent “other,” with an average age of 35 years. There were no significant differences between the groups.

The outcome variables of interest included recidivism, measured as new criminal court case filings, and levels of substance abuse, measured by the percent of positive drug tests out of the total number of drug tests over the 12-month period after drug court or probation entry, as well as the number of new court cases for drug-related crimes. Data was collected for a period up to 36 months from the date of drug court entry (for the treatment group) or the probation start date (for the comparison group). Data was assembled from two main sources: the Guam Adult Drug Court Database and a management information system that included data such as criminal history, demographic characteristics, and new court cases and charges (recidivism). Data was evaluated using univariate and multivariate analysis.

The evaluation also looked at the graduation and retention rate of the GADC. The program graduation rate is the percentage of participants who graduated from the program out of a cohort of participants who had left the program by either graduating or terminating unsuccessfully. The program retention rate is the percentage of individuals who have either graduated or are still active out of the total number who entered the program. Subgroup analyses was conducted on gender, ethnicity, age, highest grade completed, marital status, number of dependents, prior criminal cases filed in the past 2 years, lifetime criminal cases prior to drug court entry, and depression and addiction potential.

Subgroup Analysis

Carey and Waller (2007) conducted subgroup analyses on gender, ethnicity, age, highest grade completed, marital status, number of dependents, prior criminal cases filed in the past 2 years, lifetime criminal cases prior to drug court entry, and depression and addiction potential. There were several statistically significant predictors of graduation status. Graduates had a higher education level, were more likely to be married, and had fewer lifetime prior criminal court cases. Interestingly, graduates also scored higher on measures of depression and addiction potential, compared with non-graduates. Although not significant, graduates were more likely to be female and have fewer children, compared with non-graduates.

These sources were used in the development of the program profile:

These sources were used in the development of the program profile:

Following are CrimeSolutions-rated programs that are related to this practice:

Adult Drug Courts

Drug courts are specialized courts that combine drug treatment with the legal and moral authority of the court in an effort to break the cycle of drug use and drug related crime.

Evidence Ratings for Outcomes

	Crime & Delinquency - Multiple crime/offense types
	Crime & Delinquency - Drug and alcohol offenses
	Drugs & Substance Abuse - Multiple substances

Rehabilitation Programs for Adults Convicted of a Crime

This practice includes programs that are designed to reduce recidivism among adults by improving their behaviors, skills, mental health, social functioning, and access to education and employment. They may become participants in rehabilitation programs during multiple points in their involvement with the criminal justice system. This practice is rated Promising for reducing recidivism among adults who have been convicted of an offense.

Evidence Ratings for Outcomes

Crime & Delinquency - Multiple crime/offense types

Why might a practice's outcome ratings differ from the ratings of specific programs encompassed by that practice?