Earlier this year, Governor Rick Perry signed an executive order reauthorizing the Texas Criminal Justice Advisory Council to advise the governor on the creation, staffing, operations and performance of state drug courts.
The order was signed based on the conclusion that “specialty courts, such as drug courts, veterans’ courts, DWI courts, mental health courts and family courts, are believed to be a humane and cost-effective method to prevent nonviolent offenders with substance abuse or mental health problems from unnecessarily entering the criminal justice system.”
These findings were based on the fact that drug court participants in Texas have significantly lower re-arrest rates and re-incarceration rates, and they cost taxpayers significantly less money per participant.
