Should drug addicts go to jail or rehab? ?

Question

and why?

Answer 1

Rehab. Put in them in jail will only have them siting there taking cells and than releasing them back to the same life same place to live IF they have one and same type of life they had before which means they WILL be back.
If given Rehab for 30 to 90 days(preferably 60 days or longer with after care cause 30 is nothing) and then release to a sober living or half way house they have the chance to get on their feet They deal with the addiction and the whys of the addiction and learn to live a life without drugs and learn how to deal with life on different terms legal terms. They have a chance to than gain education, jobs, housing. Many addicts at least in the inner city have No where to go back to. Most are released right back to the empty houses and shooting galleries hey were in when they left. They get jobs as runners and lookouts for drug dealers cause they have not gotten anywhere in life. So in the end they are sure to go back on drugs and back into the same lifestyle and back to jail
It is a never ending cycle and it is sad
Many of those same people would Go to rehab IF they had the chance
Sadly most addicts do not have insurance or money well unless you want them to come rob you for it?? But even if they done that and got away with it There are Few beds available and those beds go QUICK
You have to call weekly to see if your name is at the top and well in all honesty when you are living in a empty house that is shared by addicts all with addictions all with habits All who IF they do not shoot heroin in the morning when they wake up they do NOT accomplish anything Sorry that is just not happening
Sadly All addicts are not living those story book lives you see on Intervention. Most of us have long ago killed all our family ties due to actions of our own from our addictions. We have no happy smiling bunch with the money to put out and send us off to some happy sunny place in Florida or some camp ground in the mountains to help us get clean and deal with our issues.
I mean i am all for any addict getting off the drugs and changing but I wish that TV showed all sides of the picture and not just the well off happy ones. In all reality those numbers for folks like that are slim and most those addicts on that show have never had to hustle struggle or try to make a way on their own i am sure if many of them Had they would never have made it and would have got clean a lot sooner.

There is maybe two shows that show true addiction from the point of view of a inner city addict.
An addict that lives this stuff day in and day out.
How do I know all this you wonder.
I am one of those inner city addicts. I had No family from age 17
I was homeless and lived in empty houses.
I had no support and trying to get into rehab (I tried numerous times) is like trying to get a invite to the white house. It ain't happening without a LOT of determination and when you are living in a empty house used as a shooting gallery well dedication to a rehab bed that MIGHT come after a couple months if you stay on point that just is not of major importance.
What is of importance is making sure you have money to go buy a bag of dope every morning. afternoon. and evening. so that you do not end up with withdrawals. Again No picnic and Nothing like that stuff they show on Intervention.

I Thank the Lord I got out and made it I have many years clean and am a happy person who finally only after i think my 8th year clean actually got to the whys in why I was using when I used and what i was running from all those years. Which is why i say I am all for drug rehab BUT I think it needs to be a lengthy stay 90 days and with a year of sober living or halfway house to make sure you are on your feet.
They did not have a drug court when I was out there. They do have one now. I only sit and wonder if maybe I would have made it out Sooner and done things differently had i got that chance to actually reach some of my dreams.
Important thing is that others who are still there are having that chance I wish more cities offered them

Answer 2

Hello,
I can answer this based on my own experience.

I WAS an addict, ive been clean for over 1 year. March 18th will be one year since i got out of jail. life is great now.
I think it depends on a lot of different factors.
As far as rehab is concerned, i think that rehab would be a better bet, if the person just started using. however if their using is what got them into trouble its probably to late for rehab.

As far as jail is concerned, depending on the crime, rehab might be better. But it is the wake up call of all wake up calls.

In my personal experience, i went to jail about 3 times, and didnt stay clean after i got out, however i only did 1 month each those times.
What really did the trick was the time i just spent in jail, almost a year.

I know that when it comes to drugs and getting clean, you need more than just one month in rehab, and they usually dont keep you for that long. Being in jail, took me away from my "life" i was leading. It gave me time to think about my life and everyone i have hurt.
I know that the only way someone will get clean is if they WANT to. And if they do, they need a whole life change, and to be away from it long enough, and clean longer than 3 months, before they should be allowed to reintegrate themselves back to their own life.
There are many things out there that can help people, IE: N/A, A/A, counseling, phychiatry, etc.
Be forewarned, N/A, while it helps a lot of people, it doesnt help everyone, they surround themselves with their former addiction, while this helps to teach people how not to repeat the same mistakes, they are nevertheless reminded of that life style, and at meetings there is a lot of drama. i went to N/A for 10 years, and never stayed clean, but this time i didnt go and stayed clean longer than i ever have. But if you go you will find people who have been clean for 5+ years and more. Like i said, and i have nothing against N/A-it is good, but it works for most and not for some.
I hope this helps,
Drug addiction is a trying time on family and friends. and the person using.
I wish the best.
Sincerely,
Lanora

Answer 3

Depends on the crimes they've committed. If their only crime is drug use, then jail won't do anything for them except teach them to be real criminals. Rehab is the best place for them. If, on the other hand, they HAVE committed other crimes to support their addiction, they should be tried for their crimes and, if convicted, be mandated to drug rehabilitation while paying for those other crimes.

Either way, rehab should be part of it, but I'd rather have a jail bed taken up by a REAL criminal instead of some guy who gets high and has never hurt anybody.

Answer 4

Rehab. There is some proof that jail doesn't work without rehab. Besides, if we removed the first time offenders for drugs the over-crowding problem we are facing in the American prison system would be taken care of.

Answer 5

Your husband needs to talk to his defence lawyer and tell him while he did these horrible things he is suffering from a drug addiction and is willing to seek help for his addiction. The defesne lawyer will approach the crown and ask for a plea deal; instead of going to jail, his client will agree to enroll in rehab as well as drug education program and agree to random drug tests. The crown may decide on this plea deal, he may not; if he/she does, he/she will approach the judge and the judge will most likely go along with the crown's decision. Hopefully this helps.

Answer 6

Addiction isn't a crime. By itself, but a violation of any penal code. Addicts should go to treatment, but only after they accept that they need help, otherwise they are wasting time money and energy that could be spent on someone who wants help. However, if an addict is arrested for a low level offense like possession of narcotics or paraphernalia, they should always be given the option of treatment, and never should be locked up for these minor offenses. Jail should be reserved for real actual crimes (burglary, assault, rape, etc). Locking up sick people solves nothing.

Answer 7

I would chose rehabilitation both for drugs as well as therapy for any other problems, if the crime is not violent. Jail should be reserved for violent offenders, and serious repeat offenders only. Jail does nothing to actually correct any real problem. I think legalizing marijuana would be a really good start to solving wastless spending in jailing people, who are usually not a threat to anyone.

Answer 8

They should recieve treatment while in Jail.

In my county there's a six month program that is very effective in treating drug addicts when outpatient treatment fails. There's also a State Prison run program - Substance Abuse Felony Punishment that has also been very effective.

Answer 9

um have you ever heard the saying you can get more drugs in jail?
because you can and our jail cells need to be avaiable for murders thiefs and so and so.
drug addicts arent bad people they just have a problem and they need people[rehab] to help them change thier lifestyles.

Answer 10

Rehab...if they are just drug addicts and are not thieves or murderers

If the crime is addiction then they should try to get rid of the addiction...if they are on drugs and committing other crimes too then they should have to do their time first and then be ordered to rehab(inpatient) afterward.