MR10: Drug courts, mental health courts, and other speciality courts have gained popularity in the U.S. Do you think these courts are an effective alternative to incarceration? Why or why not?
Specialty Courts
Specialty courts, as opposed to regular courts, were established fairly recently, within the last 50 years with the exception of juvenile courts. They aim to approach specific crime types for the most part to better address the needs of the people in the criminal justice system.
Drug courts: The precedent for all specialty courts going forward was the first drug court in Dade County, Florida in the late 1980s for retaliation in the area for the drug scene (Hector & Khey, 2022). The people in drug courts need to plead guilty in order to be put through drug treatment programs including but not limited to random screening, drug treatment, and group therapy.
Mental health courts: There were different pioneered mental health courts within the United State, each focusing on different issues, such as homelessness, lapse in mental healthcare, and jail/prison overcrowding (Hector & Khey, 2022). To address the mental health issues, the people in these courts were placed in programs, often with controlled medication regimes to keep them out of crime and out of the correctional system.
Effectiveness
Yes, these specialty courts are overall effective as alternatives to incarceration. They are sometimes nicknamed problem-solving courts because of how they tackle the issues the offenders are facing, leveraging community resources to get at the source of the issues to make sure there is less of a chance of it happening again, unlike what was common with offenders in normal courts. Using foodbanks, housing, healthcare, and so much more, the former offenders were often more of a chance at life, more legitimate ways to live and not fall victim to recidivism.
Resources:
Hector, J. & Khey, D. (2022). Criminal Justice and Mental Health: An Overview for Students. 2nd Edition. Springer Publishing. ISBN: 978-3-031-15337-2