Putnam County to Fund Program for Non-Violent Drug Offenders
The administration of Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell, county Judge James Reitz and District Attorney Adam Levy are seeking the creation of a coordinator for the program that provides alternatives to incarceration for substance abuse felons.
During the June 11 meeting of the Putnam County Legislature’s Protective Services Committee, a request was made for the coordinator to keep the program running efficiently after proposed state budget cuts threaten the elimination of two positions in the program. The position being proposed to be created is a probation coordinator/court liaison for the county’s Treatment Court.
As stated on the county’s Web site, the court is “a coordinated team effort of the assigned judge, court staff, prosecution, defense counsel, probation, sheriff’s department, mental health, social services, and treatment professionals to actively intervene and break the cycle of substance abuse, addiction and crime. Participation is offered to those who would otherwise be facing incarceration for offenses that are drug or alcohol related.”
Reitz said the program, which began in Putnam in 2002, provides alternatives to prison time for those convicted of drug and alcohol related felonies. Reitz said the Treatment Court is currently working with about 90 residents.
A wide variety of Putnam residents who would have otherwise gone to prison have benefited from the alternative program, for which participants must meet a series of requirements, Reitz said.
“We have a cross section of every walk of life,” he said.
Levy said the program is open only to those who have not been convicted of a violent crime. After meeting the requirements of the two-year program, a participant will be placed on three years probation, Levy said.
Without the alternative program, a person convicted of alcohol and drug abuse crimes would typically face between 15 months and four years in state prison, he said.
The program benefits both its participants and the taxpayers because of the costs of putting someone in prison, Levy said.
“It’s the only long-term solution,” he said.
Committee members were receptive to the creation of the coordinator position.
“I thoroughly support the program,” Legislator Roger Gross said, adding that it has saved money for taxpayers.
Odell said she would ask the full County Legislature to fund the program for the remainder of the year and that she would also allocate funding for the position in her proposed 2013 county budget.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
