Judge Jason Aslinger starts drug probation program

Even before I began my job as Judge, I knew there was a juvenile drug problem in our community. I attended a seminar after I became judge and listened to another judge speak about the "drug court" she created. She was very enthusiastic about her program and thought she was making a difference for the people in her court.

I discussed this idea with our probation department, and then a representative from the Ohio Supreme Court. The Supreme Court seems to favor an approach that gives a lot of attention to long-time addicts. I felt that a better approach, for our smaller rural community, is to try and get to the kids before they develop serious drugs problems.

My staff was ready for the challenge, and we set out almost immediately to start identifying kids that we felt needed some extra attention. These juveniles might have been charged with a drug offense - or tested positive during probation.

Our plan was to have increased accountability by having these juveniles return every-other-week for a court appearance, get an update on recovery status, and have them take a new drug test. We have been having these hearings for several months now. We have already had some great successes.

Our approach is proactive, and in some ways it is the opposite of the "traditional" approach of punishing juveniles after they have already gotten in trouble. We are spending a lot more time encouraging success, rather than waiting around to punish failure.

The Ohio Supreme Court encourages "drug courts" and has given a deadline of January 1, 2013 for all "drug courts" to be certified. We are looking forward to improving our current program and helping more kids, while also seeking Supreme Court certification in 2012. ~ Jason Aslinger