(Juneau) - The House and Senate Judiciary Committees will hold a joint meeting to hear testimony from two nationally known experts who will visit Juneau and present information about therapeutic courts throughout the U.S. The focus of the meeting will be on protecting the public from DUI's and other addiction-fueled crimes. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 14th, at 8:30am in Room 205 of the Capitol.

Dr. Doug Marlowe and Helen Harberts, are Fellows with the National Drug Court Institute. Dr. Marlowe, a lawyer and clinical psychologist, chairs the Research Committee of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and works as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

Helen Harberts is a Special Assistant District Attorney for the problem solving courts of Butte County California. She has worked in law enforcement as a Chief Probation Officer and Deputy District Attorney for over 20 years and is a lifetime member of the California Narcotics Officers Association.

The therapeutic court model is based on a process where the offender is mandated to a court-ordered program of long-term substance abuse treatment, intensive case management, close supervision with regular drug and alcohol testing, and frequent appearances before the therapeutic court judge. This approach combines the coercive power of the court with addiction treatment. Therapeutic courts have a strong record of success in breaking the cycle of repeat addictive crime. Public safety is also increased through the monitoring and accountability that is a part of the therapeutic court program.

The first therapeutic drug court began in 1989, in Miami Florida. Now there are over 1,600 therapeutic courts nationwide, including drug, DUI, family care and mental health courts. Although the model for all therapeutic courts is essentially the same, the design and structure of each court program is developed at the local level based on funding and the needs of each community.

Alaska has therapeutic courts in Anchorage, Juneau, Bethel, Palmer and Ketchikan.

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