County sides with drug court

County officials and residents have come out to defend the Sweetwater County Drug Court from proposed budget cuts.

The state is considering a cut which could remove approximately $100,000 in funding from the drug court. Drug court is a service combining addiction treatment professionals, attorneys, judges and social service workers to help those with non-violent drug and alcohol offenses in their recovery and get their lives back together. Donna Lee Bobak, Sweetwater County Clerk of District Court, described drug court as being more intense than supervised probation, as the clients involved in the program have to adhere to more guidelines than those with probation.

The county commissioners approved a resolution supporting drug court. The resolution does not commit funding towards the program, but gives political support opposing the possible funding cut.

Sandy Henderson, the drug court’s director, said the state may cut $5 million from mental health services, which include 19 state-funded drug courts. However, how the state would enact the cut is unclear.

“We’re just kind of in the dark,” Henderson said. “We don’t have a clue as to how they will do it.”

Nancy Bigley, a resident of Rock Springs, approached the county commissioners Tuesday morning asking them to reconsider proposed cuts. Bigley tearfully recounted how the county’s drug court helped her daughter while she was struggling with her addiction. Bigley said her daughter now has a job and is a productive member of the community after attending drug court. She also said drug court’s services impact multiple family members and spans generations, not just the people in the program.

Teresa Thybo, Chief Deputy County and Prosecuting Attorney, said the program serves a lot of people addicted to methamphetamine and alcohol. Thybo said the program does see children born to clients who often are able to retrieve their children from the Department of Family Services.

While many of drug court’s clients are not voluntary, members of the drug court team say a lot do learn tips that help them successfully turn their lives around, even if they relapse.

Clients also represent a savings in regard to incarceration. Rock Springs Police Chief Dwayne Pacheco said people in drug court, who many be in the program for up to two years, often get their GED, find employment and pay taxes.

That point was one Johnson suggested drug court’s supporters make while fighting the potential funding cut in Cheyenne.