Delaware County judges are taking a proactive approach in addressing the opioid epidemic and the growing problem of substance abuse by giving those struggling with addiction a second chance.

As a cooperative effort between the courts and law enforcement, defendants whose minor crimes are rooted in drug use are now being connected with treatment and rehabilitation in the early stages of the criminal justice process through the recently launched Second Chance Court pretrial drug program.

On March 9, judges of the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas and Delaware County’s Magisterial District Courts were joined by District Attorney Jack Whelan, Councilman Dave White, and police chiefs in a courtroom at the Delaware County Courthouse to announce the new program.

Spearheaded by Judge John P. Capuzzi Sr., Second Chance Court implements an early system of assessment in the pretrial phase to divert low- to moderate-risk offenders into treatment as soon as possible after their initial court appearance. The program is designed as a proactive intervention aimed at addressing potential substance abuse issues and reducing offender recidivism. It provides a system of accountability through educational programming, rehabilitation, and treatment, as opposed to the typical sentence imposed under a traditional court conviction.

“After research and discussion with treatment providers, we recognized that intervention by courts was lacking at the most critical time, immediately following the arrest,” said Capuzzi. “Consequently, the defendants struggling with addiction were released back without supervision to continue a vicious cycle of addiction. The purpose of this program is to address that gap of time between arrest and the pretrial conference so people can get the help they need right away.”

Previously, there was a lapse in time between the initial court appearance in Magisterial District Court, following an arrest, to when a criminal case reached the Court of Common Pleas level. In most instances, this was a four to six month gap in time when the individual was released from police custody to continue their struggle with addiction, or remanded to prison without receiving any type of treatment.

Through the Second Chance Court program, these individuals are identified at the time of the bail interview so that judges in Magisterial District Court can divert offenders to immediate treatment as a condition of bail. Once an individual is identified, the Delaware County Adult Probation & Parole provides supervision through the pretrial bail unit, and any violations are addressed by Judge Capuzzi and the Court of Common Pleas.

Once the person is evaluated, it will be up to that individual to continue with treatment or to go through the usual court system route.