The relationship between substance abuse, criminal activity, violence, increasing court caseloads, prison overcrowding, death and injury are well documented. Costs associated with these problems are staggering in terms of financial hardship as well as human tragedy.

The Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators recognize that substance abuse problems pervade the whole range of matters that come before the state courts of the nation: civil, criminal and family. The majority of criminal offenders test positive for substance abuse; the growing number of child and spousal abuse cases, as well as many juvenile matters, often involve substance abuse; creating a backlog of other cases on is delayed as criminal caseloads increase. The presence of substance abuse as a major factor in state court cases makes clear the need for new approaches and a change in public policy.

The Court Referral Officer Program began in 1985 as a pilot program to assist judges in early identification and placement of DUI offenders as one method of reducing the devastating problem of drunk driving. Since the implementation of the Mandatory Treatment Act of 1990, Court Referral Officers have provided services to defendants in a broader spectrum of cases related to alcohol and drug use or abuse.

In the past seventeen years, Court Referral Officers have evaluated, referred, monitored and provided drug screening services for more than 300,000 defendants. This speaks well for what has been accomplished with the limited and sometimes total lack of resources.

Court Referral Officers (CROs) are a key ingredient in Alabama's comprehensive approach to the management of cases involving substance abuse or other related issues. Utilizing the Operational Screening Criteria as well as validated testing instruments, CROs provide a thorough evaluation and make appropriate recommendations for each defendant. This important information will ensure placement of each defendant in the most appropriate program to supplement traditional judicial sanctions.

While friends, relatives, and employers can be very persuasive in compelling a substance abuser to enter treatment, a judge can offer the choice of jail or help for his/her drinking or drug problem. Intervention from the bench with a contrite defendant who understands the options can be one of the simplest and most effective means of causing a defendant to turn his or her life around and increase the likelihood that he will not return to court on later substance abuse-related charges.

Local Court Referral Programs were developed to assist defendants with alcohol and drug abuse-related offenses with education and/or treatment referral services and to be able to act as "resource brokers" within local communities. These programs have been designed to be used in conjunction with court orders and not as a replacement for judicial sanctions.

It is important to remember that a CRO serves the courts. A CROs primary goal is to evaluate defendants and make recommendations in the best interests of the defendants and the community.