SOUTHERN
INDIANA — Indiana recently reached a milestone when it added its 100th
problem-solving court, a system Clark and Floyd counties have been
leading the way in for nearly a decade.
The Indiana Supreme Court
released a complete list of the courts in early April, announcing
Pulaski County's newly certified veterans treatment court as the mark to
tip to 100. Thy join 49 other counties in the state with similar
programs.
The courts are in addition to the regular county courts, and focus on
issues such as drugs and addiction, re-entry after incarceration,
mental health, family recovery and domestic violence.
The courts in Clark and Floyd counties specialize largely in
addiction issues — but each is different and seek to cater to the
specific needs of different populations, to help give them the tools to
break their cycles of addiction and recidivism.
"We're seeing a decrease in crime and we're helping to rebuild the
strength of these folks," said Maria Granger, Floyd County Superior
Court No. 3 Judge who started the state's first veteran's court in 2011.
"So they can contribute their talents to the community and the
workforce and be a support to their families."
Granger knew early into her first term as judge that the court was
needed — as she continued to see people come before her bench that were
veterans struggling with addiction.
The judge sought to get a program in place where veterans would get
support to get treatment and change the addiction-related crimes their
were caught up in.
"[We] started looking at what it takes to build a warrior, the
mindset and the training and conditioning that goes into that; their
life skills are completely different than being a civilian," Granger
said. "We were treating them like civilians because that's what we saw
and we were doing the best we could."
And the program has grown — in 2015, Clark County Circuit Court Judge
Andrew Adams began partnering with Granger on cases and in 2018, Clark
County was certified for a veterans court. Now, the team works in tandem
to help the veterans of Southern Indiana get help they need. Granger
said they've had an 85 percent success rate — those people who don't
reoffend. Next month, nine of the current participants are expected to
graduate.
In late 2018, Adams also got preliminary certification for a new
Clark County court meant to help those falling through the cracks — the
Clark County Addiction Treatment and Support Program (CCATS.) It's meant
to help those with mental illness or addition issues while on
probation, to help them keep from returning to jail or prison.
This could mean, for example, that a person who may get arrested for
on a level 6 felony for possession of a syringe gets help before the
crimes progress.
"When they get caught with a level 6 it's probably their first
contact," Adams said. "Eventually we see these individuals on the
overdose list or in the criminal justice system with a higher felony
like burglary or robbery.
"If we can identify them early and offer services, it may prevent crime in the long run."
Participants in the program first complete a long-term inpatient
recovery program, followed by a phase in which the program facilitator
meets with them regularly, helping them with tools like help with sober
living, assistance finding housing or jobs.
Currently, there are five men and two women in CCATS; the men do
their treatment portion at the Clark County jail through its Mental
Health Addiction Supervision and Treatment Program, however they've had
some trouble finding the appropriate places for women.
Adams said he hopes that can change; he's been in talks with the
Clark County Sheriff's Office on getting the same program for women,
potentially within the year. If it happens, Adams said it would be one
of few similar programs for women in the state.
"That's what we're hoping," he said. "That way we can generate
further interest upstate in supporting some of these programs
financially.
One such program has seen that kind of response. Clark County's
Family Treatment Drug Court, presided over by Clark County Circuit Court
No. 4 Judge Vicki Carmichael, was established in 2011 and recently
received a state grant to expand its services up to seven times over.
The court focuses on programming to help reunite parents who have
temporarily lost custody of their children due to drug and addiction
issues. Though at the start the program had rough;y two to three
participants at a time, its capacity had grown to 25 as of the start of
2018.
But mid-year, the court received was one of a handful of Indiana
counties to receive federal funding to continue to grow the program. The
$2.1 million grant over five years from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, paved the way for Clark County's family drug court to have room for 175 families.
Over the past eight years, Judge Granger has not only tried to grow
the Southern Indiana veterans courts, but helped mentor those starting
veterans courts in other counties. Though when they started in 2011,
there were fewer problem-solving courts in the state, things have
changed — there's been a shift in the way the justice system treats
people whose crimes are related to more deep-seated mental health or
addiction issues.
"Some of the stigma has been reduced," Granger said. "They look at it
not as a thing to be shunned and locked away; they're trying to look
for ways to help people heal.
"I think people have been able to grasp the concept that long term
opiate treatment is not something you can just walk away from. You need
to learn skills; you need coaching and support."