The Honorable Barbara Gorman is the retiring Presiding Judge of the Montgomery County [Ohio] Common Pleas Court. She also presided over the Common Pleas Drug Court, one of the problem-solving courts which were the subject of today's presentation.
It has long been recognized that most criminal matters coming before the courts do not involve violent crimes but are lower level offenses that involve drugs or alcohol in one way or another. Thus 20-25 years ago Ohio established a drug court for lower level offenses with a goal of rehabilitation rather than punishment. Offenders appear before the court weekly, and the backbone of the system are the probation officers who monitor the defendant's progress.
In Ohio there are separate courts for men and women, since women frequently have abuse issues to deal with. There also is a separate court for the treatment of veterans with which the VA in Dayton gets involved.
Judge Gorman explained that treatment issues change with the type of drug involved. At one time crack cocaine was most often involved. It is addictive, but not nearly so much as heroin and fentanyl, which have more of a physical compnent. When heroin became the drug of choice and found its way into the suburbs, more people were willing to look at the role of the courts as being rehabilitation rather than punishment. There are drugs effective in dealing with heroin and fentanyl, but it is also necessary to deal with the underlying problem.
Methamphetamine abuse is a now a big problem, and it is not only addictive but gets people jacked up, often causing more violent crimes. In the Q&A that followed Judge Gorman's presentation Benzie County Probation Officer Shaun Anchak said that meth is most involved with drug cases locally.