DUI probation court feels weight of harsher laws

DUI probation court feels weight of harsher laws
Jill Redhage, Tribune
Combine the new stricter punishments for drunken drivers with law enforcement’s holiday DUI crackdown, and you get a lot more people eligible for DUI probation court, a DUI Court judge says.

Recently, the number of participants in the program — an alternative to regular probation for people convicted of a felony associated with drunken driving — has climbed to almost 400.

Serious DUI offenders will first face the state’s new laws, which went into effect on Sept. 19. The law requires anyone guilty of driving with a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.20 or higher to spend at least 45 days in jail, to pay at least $500 in fines and to use an ignition interlock device for 18 months.

A second DUI conviction within seven years earns the driver no fewer than 180 days in jail, at least $1,000 fine and two years driving with an interlock device.

Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Steven Lynch said DUI probation court has been so successful that the court would like to expand it, but its prospects are unclear given a tight county budget. Lynch also said the program is limited geographically to where its counseling centers are located.

The three-step program, typically taking 18-24 months to complete, is meant not only to punish people who drive drunk, but also to help them recover from substance abuse problems and to reduce recidivism.

‘MORE STRENUOUS’
“DUI probation court is so much more strenuous than regular probation,” said Lynch, who holds probation court in his 1 W. Madison St. courtroom in Phoenix three Friday mornings each month.

“But if you complete the program, your likelihood of reoffending is much lower than someone who’s just completed standard probation.” Lynch said the recidivism rates drop well over 50 percent for participants.

The program combines group counseling, one-on-one counseling, drug and alcohol testing, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, paying court fines and attending DUI probation court meetings.

The participants, often beginning with electronic monitoring anklets that detect alcohol in their blood, earn increasingly more freedom as they progress successfully through the program.

Former presiding Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Colin Campbell started DUI probation court in the late 1990s. Since then, the program has grown to serve 300 to 400 people at a time. Participants are screened when convicted to determine if they’d be a good match for the program; usually people with significant substance abuse problems, but not a criminal past, are the best candidates.

In 2002, presiding Superior Court Judge Barbara Rodriguez Mundell began Spanish DUI probation court, staffed by a Spanish-speaking county attorney, public defender, probation officer, counselor and herself. Mundell has said participants in the Spanish program, meeting every five weeks, are more likely to graduate than those in the English program.

During a recent probation court meeting, 48 people crammed into a small basement courtroom and listened for their names to be called.

Lynch first called the names of four people he’d be taking into custody, because they’d violated the terms of the program. Two were no-shows, and he issued warrants for their arrests.

Then came the four program graduates. All received framed diplomas, congratulations from the judge and a chance to speak before their peers.

“Do everything you gotta do. Keep your eye on the prize,” one graduate advised.

Another graduate said, “This has not been an easy 16 months for me.” He spoke of relapsing several times, forbidden by the program. But one day he switched his way of thinking — he got positive — he said, and breezed through the program.

“It changed my life,” he said.

After the graduate spoke, Lynch commended the “stars” — participants who have worked especially hard, attended extra meetings, paid off fines and who otherwise have proven their desire to succeed. Lynch singled out 11 for this honor, greeting them with a
“Congratulations,” a handshake and a note in their records.

‘COLLECTIVE BENEFIT’
“The whole idea is when you see people being praised, others being sanctioned — there’s a collective benefit for everyone,” Lynch said. “For a lot of these folks, they just have no other support in their lives.”

Following the “stars” and before meeting the new recruits, Lynch spoke with 22 participants in varying stages of the program experiencing varying levels of success.

He asked a woman to tell the group about a class she’d taken describing the possible consequences of driving drunk, such as causing a fatal motor vehicle collision.

“I’m glad I got caught when I did,” she said.