Specialty Courts
Juvenile Drug Court
The Juvenile Drug Court program is a partnership among
the Eighth Judicial Circuit Court, Department of Juvenile Justice, State
Attorney's Office, Public Defender's Office and treatment providers to more
effectively deal with chemically dependent juveniles. Juveniles who participate
in juvenile drug court must be committable children. Juvenile drug court is
designed not only to assist juveniles to stop using illegal substances, but to
learn more constructive behavior to prevent them from getting deeper in the
juvenile justice system. Juveniles are offered the opportunity to remain in
their own community and receive intensive substance abuse treatment using the
multisystemic therapy model. This model promotes behavior change in the youth's
environment through clinical services by targeting the youth's family, peers,
school and community. Additionally, it empowers parents with the necessary
skills and resources needed to assist in raising their children into successful
citizens of their community.
Juveniles are referred to the Juvenile Drug Court Program by the State Attorney and/or the Public Defender assigned to juvenile court. Referred juveniles must have pled to a drug charge or a charge that resulted from substance usage, as well as a documented pattern of history of alcohol and/or drug abuse or addiction. In addition, there must be a parent/guardian willing to be actively involved in the treatment.
Dependency Drug Court
The Dependency Drug Court Program is a partnership between the Eighth Judicial Circuit Court, Department of Children and Families, Child Welfare Legal Services, the Guardian Ad Litem Program, defense attorneys, and treatment providers to work with chemically dependent parents who are involved in the dependency court system. Parents are offered the opportunity to break the cycle of addiction with early intervention, intensive treatment, weekly court sessions to provide immediate response for both success and/or failure to comply with program policies. This program is designed to help parents live a drug free life and to assume the total responsibility of parenting their children as soon as possible.
Parents are referred to Dependency Drug Court by the Dependency Court Judge. Parents referred must be an active client of the Department of Children and Families, with a petition for Dependency filed with the court. Additionally, parents must have a current pattern of history of alcohol and/or drug abuse or addiction.
The average length of the Dependency Drug Court Program is one year, and the participants must be willing to be involved. This program provides support and treatment in order to facilitate family reunification and permanency planning for children.
Adult Felony Drug Court
The Adult Felony Drug Court Program, a division of the Alachua County Department of Court Services, provides a pretrial diversion program to individuals who have been arrested and charged with substance abuse related offenses. It provides an alternative to incarceration and is based on a therapeutic rather than a punitive model.
The Adult Felony Drug Court Program provides the following services: group and individual therapy, acupuncture/mediation therapy, support groups, random drug testing, and case management. The philosophy of this program is that providing rehabilitation for individuals with substance abuse problems will curb recidivism.
The average length of the Adult Felony Drug Court Program is 12-18 months. Successful completion of this Drug Court Program will result in the participant's charges being nolle prossed by the Office of the State Attorney.
Mental Health Court
The Mental Health Court Program is a partnership between the Eighth Judicial Circuit Court, Department of Children and Families, defense attorneys, State Attorney’s Office, Alachua County Court Services, and treatment providers to work with defendants arrested for misdemeanor offenses who are mentally ill or developmentally disabled. By providing defendants access to the least restrictive treatment, training, and support services necessary to reduce recidivism and ensure public safety, the program is designed to divert the mentally ill and developmentally disabled defendants from jail and to expedite legal case processing through the criminal justice system.
Defendants are referred to the Mental Health Court Program by Judges, Alachua County Court Services, defense attorney, prosecutors, law enforcement officers, mental health providers, and the Forensic Program Director at the Alachua County Jail. Defendants accepted into the program must have been diagnosed with an Axis I mental health illness or a development disability, who have been arrested on a non-violent misdemeanor charge.
The Mental Health Court Program is a voluntary program. The average length of this program is four to six months. Upon successful completion of the Mental Health Court Program, the charges will be dismissed and the criminal case closed.
For more information on any of the specialty courts offered in the Eighth Judicial Circuit, please call Lina Catasus at (352) 384-3094.
