With the aim of rehabilitating and reintegrating addicts back into society, Guyana’s first drug treatment court was this morning commissioned in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
Delivering the featured address at the ceremony was Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan.
Ramjattan noted that soon after he became minister, deliberation began for the formulation of a National Drug Strategy Master Plan from 2016 to 2020.
He said that the implementation of alternatives to incarceration for drug use offenders was one of the significant matters deliberated. The Minister indicated that actuals surveys and statics shows drug-related offences being one of the leading causes of incarceration.
He revealed that approximately 1/5 of the inmate population were convicted for drug possession, hence an alternative had to be found. He said that an additional reason was, of course, the high financial cost of imprisonment per inmate.
This, he added, caused the Organization of American States Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (OAS- CICAD) and the National Anti-Narcotics Agency of Guyana to implement a regime of the drug treatment court here in Guyana.
The drug treatment court provides an alternative to traditional court practice.
“The application which can be described as therapeutic jurisperitus. It is a court that moves away from the traditional administerial system and uses traditional proceeding to coordinate Magistrates, prosecutors and defence counsel to work with counselors and social workers to form a treatment team for the clients which will provide rehabilitative services to offenders,” Minister Ramjattan told the gathering.
The goal of the court is to encourage persons charged for drug possession to undergo treatment.
Also, at the ceremony this morning, Attorney General Basil Williams said that one of the goals of the court is to ensure rehabilitated offenders live a productive life free from stigma and discrimination.
Also speaking at the opening were Ret’d Major General and Director of National Anti-Narcotics Agency, Mr. Michael Atherly and Honorable Madame Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards.
Six Magistrates underwent extensive training to hear matters in the Drug Treatment Court.
The Drug Treatment Court is a specialized court for persons with substance use disorders such as drug addiction. It provides an alternative to imprisonment. Rather than imprisoning these persons, this court gives them the opportunity to enter long-term treatment and agree to court supervision.
To be eligible for the Drug Treatment Court, a person must be an adult who has been charged with a minor criminal drug related offence.
It was stated that if a person pleads guilty or is found guilty of their charge(s); their sentences would be deferred while they participate in the Drug Treatment Court program.
In many cases, participants who successfully complete the Drug Treatment Court program may receive a light sentence such as a fine or community service.
Persons will be given an opportunity to voluntarily enter the court program and undergo a four phase treatment supervised by treatment providers and a magistrate. Participants are to be rewarded for maintaining their treatment plans and sanctioned for failure to meet their obligations.
Upon successful completion of the program, there will be a graduation ceremony by which time the participant will be rehabilitated and prepared for reintegration into their community where they can meaningfully contribute to society.
If a participant fails to complete the program, his or her case will be processed as normal in the traditional criminal justice system.
