JUVENILE DRUG COURT HITS FUNDING CRISIS

A potential crisis for a relatively new county program could receive some
financial relief, allowing the program to continue for another year.

The juvenile drug court program is about three years old and has had about
250 juveniles to go through the program with about 150 successfully graduating.

Funding for the program, however, fell through, leaving the Marshall County
Juvenile Probation Department looking for $76,000 to fund the program next
year.

Juvenile Probation Supervisor Donna Johnson said the grant application was
turned down by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs,
but the program is too vital a part of the juvenile justice system because
her department as well as the local judges worked to find funding for the
program.

District Court Judge Howard Hawk said the juvenile drug court is one
alternative to sentencing juveniles that has benefited all involved. The
court can order a juvenile to participate in the program, which has
stringent requirements including six months of no drug use. If the
requirements are not met, the juvenile is sentenced to a detention
facility. If the juvenile successfully completes the program, he or she is
given a second chance with the offense wiped from their record.

"Before this, judges' only recourse was to send the juveniles home to the
same home environment or to send them to a detention center where they are
learning to be good gang members from gang members who are there from
larger cities," Hawk said.

Johnson and Hawk received support from the Marshall County Commission in
keeping the program going. Hawk said he wanted the commission to be aware
of the funding crisis prior to budget time, and the commission offered
their support in trying to keep the program going.