Alternative Sentencing: Money Well Spent

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Florida is losing the war on drugs though financial attrition. The economic impact of substance abuse in the Sunshine State is estimated to be roughly 6% of the state’s gross domestic product (Miami 20). Contributing to the problem is the myopic view of a judicial system that chooses to impose harsh criminal penalties, including incarceration, on non-violent offenders with minor possession charges. Increasing budgetary constraints, leading to fewer available resources, contrast harshly with the rapidly growing substance abuse. In 2009, statewide drug convictions increased by 5.9%, while state and federal funding toward alternative-sentencing programs decreased by 5.8% (Families 3; National Center). Currently Florida has more than 20,000 inmates imprisoned with an additional 60,000 in jail for assorted drug charges; a large portion are serving sentences for crimes involving minor possession or simple purchasing (Families 2). The fiscally responsible response to non-violent offenders charged with minor possession is not the judicial system’s traditional approach, but rather utilizing alternative-sentencing programs such as drug court.

In 1982, Florida enacted mandatory minimum sentencing for drug offenders, as a result of pressure to avoid federal sanctions (TASC 4). Within 18 months, thousands of offenders were charged with simple purchasing or possession of controlled substances, and federal and state courts were quickly overwhelmed. The growing number of incarcerated drug offenders tripled over the following decade causing prisons and jails to suffer from overcrowding (National TASC 6). With federal and state budgets stretched dangerously thin, Florida legislature quickly passed state statutes allowing judges to disch...

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...ions, n.d. Web. 03 April 2012.

Florida. Executive Office of the Governor. Directory of DCF Funded Adolescent Substance

Abuse Treatment Programs. Tallahassee: Executive Office of the Governor, 2009. Print.

Florida. Supreme Court Task Force on Treatment-Based Drug Courts. Report on Florida’s Drug

Courts. Tallahassee: Office of the State Courts Administrator, 2009. Print.

Miami Behavioral Health Center. The Annual Economic Impact of Alcohol and Drug Use in

Florida. Miami: Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association, 2009. Print.

National Center for State Courts. “Budget Resource Center.” www.ncsconline.org. National

Center for State Courts, n.d. Web. 03 April 2012

National TASC. Considering Public Safety: The TASC Abilities. Alexandria: Office of Justice,

Programs, n.d. Print.

TASC. Clinical Case Management Model. Washington: N.p. n.p., 2011. Print.

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