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Philosophy
The philosophy of our program is
that individuals having been convicted
for driving under the influence
can be defined as problem drinkers, alcoholics, and or substance abusers in various stages
of chemical dependency approximately
80% of the time. It is our belief
that these individuals can be helped
to gain insight into the negative
effects that alcohol and drugs have
had on their lives in the past.
By using a broad spectrum curriculum,
including individual counseling,
group therapy, alcohol and drug
awareness classes and self help
groups; coupled with a total abstinence
concept, we have given many clients
a new outlook and more productive
lifestyle.
Our philosophy, as we relate to
the court and the community, takes
a different direction. The courts
are the referring agency for our
program, and they deserve the most
accurate information possible regarding
our clients’ compliance or non-compliance
with our program. In that we are
experts in the community, it is
our responsibility to educate the
courts regarding treatment needs
and goals for the most effective
way of dealing with the individual
arrested for driving under the influence.
In the courts where our program
is utilized, we have established
a policy of requiring all second
and subsequent offender program
participants to return to court
within 30 days of the program acceptance
to show the court proof of enrollment
in the program. We provide each
client with an acceptance letter,
which notifies the court of the
client’s acceptance, diagnosis,
curriculum, and amount of time needed
to complete the program. This procedure
closes the gap between the program
and the court system, and allows
the court to identify those individuals
who have failed to appear for program
participation within the allotted
time period.
With our SB38 18 month concept, we provide
the court with progress letters
at 6-month intervals to establish
short term goals for the client
and allow the program to evaluate
the client’s participation and needs
as the program progresses. The letter
provides the court with information
regarding the client’s attendance,
participation, changes in behavior
patterns, change in attitudes, change
in lifestyle, upcoming curriculum
requirements, and request for continued
involvement. We will utilize the
progress letter in the AB541 program
as a way of notifying the court
when a client is in need of a continuance,
or has been unable to complete the
required curriculum in the allotted
time. This procedure allows the
client to go to court with an official
letter from the program and increases
credibility to the client’s request
for more time. The letter provides
the court with the client’s curriculum
up to their court date and explains
the reason for the need for a continuance
and requests an appropriate amount
of time for the client’s continuance.
Our philosophy regarding the need
for return to court letters has
evolved over the past 25 years of
working with many courts in the
state of California. It is imperative
that the clients’ non-compliance
requirements be reported to the
court having jurisdiction immediately
to enable the court to dispose of
the client’s case and impose sentencing
expeditiously. Return to court letters
are used when the client has not
complied due to poor attendance,
poor attitude, failure to maintain
total abstinence, or the client
receiving a subsequent arrest for
driving under the influence. It
is our policy to return clients
to court within two weeks of non-compliance
with program requirements. In the
majority of cases, it is our policy
to recommend further treatment,
in-patient treatment, a detoxification
program or Antabuse therapy for
those people who are unable to comply
with program attendence/abstinence requirements but are
still in need of treatment. In that
we are a service to the court system,
and the expert in the community.
Our recommendation is a benefit
to the court, the community, and
it increases the chances for the client’s
future rehabilitation and abstinence. |
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| ©2009
Driver Benefits, Inc. All rights reserved.
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2370
West Carson Street, Suite 150, Torrance, CA
90501 • 310-320-9550 • E-mail |
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