Brian Pease was pulling out of Taco Bell on Dixie Highway after a night of drinking last summer when he nearly hit a sheriff’s patrol car.
Pease, an Independence Township resident, already had one drunk driving conviction, and knew a second meant serious trouble.
But as he stood in the 52-2 District Court, Pease, 27, found himself with a choice to make’he could go to jail, as he fully expected, or he could choose Sobriety Court.
The 52-2 District Court joined a national movement toward programs like Sobriety Court in November 2004 as repeat drunk driving offenses continued to increase across the area.
Today, nearly 2000 such programs operate in courts across the U.S.
‘The Sobriety Court started back in 1989 when a wise judge in Miami realized he was seeing the same criminals over and over and over again,? said Judge Dana Fortinberry during a Sobriety Court graduation ceremony. ‘And the reason he kept seeing them was because they were addicted to drugs or alcohol.?
The event at the Colombiere Center in Springfield Township May 16 was to honor Pease and 10 other program graduates.
The 52-2’s Sobriety Court is a voluntary, but highly-supervised treatment program, designed to help people overcome substance abuse issues.
The program uses a team approach’the judge, prosecutor, probation officer, coordinator and treatment providers regularly meet to review and discuss each case.
A person must be at least a second offense drunk driver, have no violent offenses on his or her record, and reside within jurisdiction of the 52-2 District Court to participate in Sobriety Court.
The program lasts 15-24 months, depending on performance and compliance’participants are required to take part in individual counseling and 12-step programs, attend review hearings, submit to regular drug and alcohol screening, and report to their probation officer on assigned days.
Maintaining regular employment or enrollment in an education program is mandatory.
Participants must also pay costs of Sobriety Court, which’when fees for fines, testing, and therapy are totaled’usually amounts to between $5,000 and $7,500 by the time graduation day rolls around.
Currently, more than 50 of the program’s 60 slots are filled.
‘People get sober in this program and they don’t come back and they don’t reoffend,? said Fortinberry. ‘They become productive, contributing members of our society.?
Although many courts across the country cater specifically to drug addicts’the program is officially dubbed ‘Drug Court?’the 52-2 program is structured primarily for alcohol abuse problems.
‘Alcohol is the drug of choice in our area,? said Fortinberry.
So, while Pease didn’t know what to expect from Sobriety Court, and it didn’t sound like much fun, he figured he could wing it’anything was better than jail.
But 18 months later, Pease is seeing things through clear eyes. He’s sober and healthy, taking college classes, and, come this fall, he’ll head off to the U.S. Marine Corps.
Sobriety Court, he said, gave him a second chance.
‘It was by far the biggest life-changing experience I’ve ever been afforded,? said Pease. ‘I’m so grateful I was given the opportunity.?
Although everyone who supported him during Sobriety Court says Pease did the work, Pease said he couldn’t have done it without the help and encouragement he received’from his friends.
‘It’s nice to have leaders of the community step up and help you,? he said. ‘It feels good to be around people who care so much about you.?
It was that sense of being cared for, and cared about, he said, that helped forge bonds over the year-and-a-half he spent in the program.
‘We became good friends,? he said. ‘I know it’s their job, but they take a lot of pride in their job, and they take a lot of time out of their lives to do it.?
But the bonds that form are not limited to the defendants.
Fortinberry said she expected the connection that develops between the judge and the individuals in Sobriety Court, as it was an aspect emphasized when she attended training at the National Drug Court Institute.
‘It’s one of the things that allows us to help them,? she said. ‘But they also get to know us, and get to a point where they don’t want to disappoint us, and that’s an important aspect of the program.?
Judge Kelly Kostin, who presided over Pease’s stint in sobriety Court, agreed
‘As a judge my job is to be fair and impartial,? Kostin said. ‘As a sobriety court judge, we get the opportunity to get to know people, to connect with them. We don’t always get that, otherwise.?
To support a recovery effort, she said, one must realize the process is not linear. People make mistakes and need patience and support when they do.
‘Relapses are part of the process,? she said. ?(The participants) are sanctioned, they get past them and move on, they see success.?
A violation of terms results in graduated sanctioning’community service work, for example, or an increase in required 12-step meeting attendance. More serious violations result in more serious sanctions, such as jail time.
Sobriety Court Probation Officer Mark Mathur, who takes care of all day-to day operations and defines himself as a gatekeeper of sorts, ensures defendants remain in compliance with conditions of Sobriety Court.
Mathur, who is also a certified addictions counselor, said he likes to spend at least 30 minutes talking to people when they come in for a meeting.
‘I want to get to know them,? he said. ‘If I don’t get to know who they are, where they come from and what their families are like, I’m not going to be as successful.?
The success stories’changes in lifestyle, health and relationships’he said, are the best part of the job. Every aspect of a person’s life improves with sobriety.
Oakland County Deputy Jim Bowie of the Independence Township substation presented Pease with his graduation award.
of the Independence Township substation presented Pease with his graduation award.
Bowie, the officer Pease nearly sideswiped on Dixie Highway, received a copy of the healthy living plan, written by Pease.
‘I was impressed and honored by how you spoke about me,? he said to Pease during the ceremony. ‘I will keep that (plan) along with other notable career highlights I’ve had.?
Bowie said it was the hope of being able to help in such a way that prompted him to become a police officer.
‘If I do one thing in my career that can change someone’s life or save someone’s life, then I’ve done my job. I guess I was fortunate’I’ve been with the sheriff’s office 11 years and from reading your report I’ve already attained my goal.?
According to Fortinberry, the numbers provide testament to the program’s success.
Nationally, for non-Sobriety Court, the rate of recidivism for drunk-driving convicted offenders is between 33 and 44 percent.
However, sobriety court participants nationally have a recidivism rate of 16 percent.
Locally, the numbers are even lower.
‘We are proud that in the 52-2 there’s a 6.2 percent recidivism rate, which is very, very low,? she said. ‘But more importantly, for folks who graduate from the program, the recidivism rate is zero.?
Because those working in the Sobriety Court were willing to show him the way, even when he didn’t want to go, Pease was able to find the strength and self-respect to get through the program.
Come October 13, he’ll have two years of sobriety under his belt.
‘I’m very proud of that,? he said.