Drug Court gaining attention

Three Polk County residents got a second chance at an addiction-free life during the second graduation ceremony of the Tallapoosa Circuit Drug Court.

Surrounded by their loved ones, the three graduates of the program received their diplomas from Superior Court Judge Richard Sutton.

The Drug Court program, organized in February 2004, is a 12-month, intensive outpatient rehabilitation program. It follows a strict mission of improving lives and increasing public safety by reducing the amount and frequency of drug related crimes.

The first graduation of the Drug Court program was held in January.

Though only two graduation ceremonies have been held in the local program so far, other counties in Georgia and across the nation have already taken note.

Ed Graves, a Cedartown businessman who serves as chair for the Governor’s Advisory Council for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases, said that other court systems are looking at the Tallapoosa Circuit’s program as a model.

“The reason they are looking at it is because the drug court uses the Matrix Model of treatment. We are one of the first in this part of the country to use the Matrix,” Graves explained. “With it, we are two years out in front of everyone else.”

The Matrix Model is designed to reverse the chemical changes in the brain that occurred as a result of the drug abuse.

According to Donna Johnson, addiction therapist for Drug Court, the Matrix Method was developed in California about 10 years ago when that state had a methamphetamine epidemic. Followers of the Matrix Method learn to re-program their brain, allowing it to function as if the drug abuse had never occurred. “This method helps heal the brain,” Johnson said. “It has so much to do with brain chemistry. And it works; our retention rate is 89 percent. That’s pretty unheard of.”

The Drug Court program operates with state grant money, D.A.R.E. funds and user fees. Participants in the program pay a $100 fee each month to the program.

Participants in the program are given random drug testing. They must also work full time, earn their GED if needed, attend Narcotics Anonymous or Alcoholics Anonymous twice a week, attend group counseling three times a week and abide by a curfew.

They are required to complete community service and attend Drug Court sessions twice a month.

Graves said the local program was excellent, but stressed a need for other drug-related services. “We need other services for drug recovery. You can’t get in the Drug Court program unless you’ve broken the law. There needs to be services available to people wanting help before they break the law.”

Cedartown Standard