Drug Court begins new Low Risk Track

Today, the Adult Drug Court program welcomed it's first participant into a new Low-Risk treatment track. 

National best practices for drug courts recommend that drug courts limit their participant's to defendants that have both a high level of need for supervision as well as a high risk to reoffend without treatment, using the classification model developed by Douglas Marlowe.

Historically the adult drug court has accepted participants who fell outside of the high risk quadrant. As the program works to expand implementation of recognized best practices, as well as reaching program caseload limits, the need for a new track was recognized.  The Cowlitz County Drug Court in cooperation with the Prosecutor's Office and the Office of Public Defense, has developed this additional supervision track In response to this need,.

Designed to provide a sentencing option for defendant's who do not screen into the High Risk requirements of the regular Adult Drug Court Program, the Low Risk track will operate in much the same fashion as the highly successful Drug Court program. It will be targeting individuals who may not qualify for a standard diversion program, and yet do not quite fit into the High Risk-High Needs category.

The Drug Court Office has hired a new case aide to manage this track with court dockets to be heard on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday's of each month before the Drug Court Judge. This is the second major addition to the Cowlitz County Superior Court Therapeutic Programs, with the Mental Health Court having commenced on June 13, 2018 to address defendant's whose primary diagnosis is related to mental health.