Treatment courts across South Dakota will hold special events in May to celebrate National Treatment Court Month.
Rather than continuing the revolving door of addiction and related crime, treatment courts lead people with substance use and mental health disorders out of the justice system and into lives of recovery, stability and health. South Dakota’s 17 treatment courts have planned uplifting events to recognize individuals whose lives have been transformed by the treatment and support provided by these programs.
Codington County Treatment Court will hold a graduation ceremony in Courtroom No. 222 at the Codington County Courthouse in Watertown, on May 24, at 10 a.m.. The public is invited to attend. Participants and team members will also volunteer cleaning up bins at the Watertown Area PACH (People Against Child Hunger) on May 29.
South Dakota Director of Treatment Courts Noreen Plumage said: “Treatment courts like ours differ from traditional court because we invite treatment providers and other public health professionals to be a part of the team. They ensure each person in our program receives an evidence-based treatment plan. Treatment providers work together with the judge, defense attorneys, prosecutors, probation and law enforcement to provide ongoing support and accountability to program participants in their recovery journey.”
This approach allows treatment courts to identify and meet individual needs beyond clinical treatment, such as education, employment, housing assistance, family reunification, restitution and health care. Treatment courts prove it is possible to repair lives, reunite families, reduce drug use and crime, and to do so at far less cost than jail or prison time.
National Treatment Court Month is coordinated by All Rise, the training, membership and advocacy organization for justice system innovation addressing substance use and mental health. Learn more about South Dakota’s 17 treatment courts, which are part of the South Dakota Unified Judicial System, at https://ujs.sd.gov/Circuit_Court/Problem_Solving_Courts/Default.aspx.
You can read the full article at KXLG.