Fostering success among drug court participants: A study of factors that impact drug court completion

Many substance abusers become involved with the criminal justice system at some point, and drug courts are an expanding avenue to reach them with treatment services. While drug courts are effective in many cases, there is a need to explore which factors contribute to successful completion. Records of all individuals who entered a suburban drug court program from 2004-2006 were reviewed (n=271). These included information about demographics, arrests, substances abused, physical and mental health, and drug court progress. Likelihood of success was associated with being employed, greater education, having private insurance, client perceived problem severity, alcohol as a drug of choice, DWI as a current charge, one prior arrest, fewer children, and reporting treatment or medication for mental health issue(s). Cocaine or cannabis abuse, drug abuse symptoms, multiple drugs of choice, past substance abuse treatment, an inpatient stay during drug court, theft as a current charge, two or more prior arrests, and sanctions or warrants during drug court were associated with increased risk for failure. The final model correctly classified 82% of failures and 91% of successes and included type of insurance, perceived problem severity, abuse of cannabis or cocaine, inpatient placement, and having any warrants. Based on these findings, it is recommended that a broad range of variables be considered (e.g., insurance status, substances of abuse) when drug court staff interact with drug court participants. Being mindful of issues that predict completion may increase the allocation of resources toward clients who need extra attention to complete successfully.