Drug Courts Begin in New Hampshire

New Hampshire now has drug and mental health courts available in some district and superior courts across the state. Drug and mental health courts provide an alernative to jail sentences. Their purpose is to avoid recitivism through treatment programs combined with close and strict oversight combined with the possibility of jail time for failure to comply.

What does this have to do with Family Law? Family issues frequently involve drug addiction or mental heath problems. Either can be the basis for a divorce, or a dispute between parents over children, or the need for guardian for the children. Criminal arrests related to drug use and mental illness affect not only an individual in a family, but also the entire legal structure of the family. Drug and mental health courts may be able to provide alternatives to parents in the midst of a divorce or parenting case that may enable a parent to maintain contact with his or her children.

The post below links to an HBO film documenting a drug court in Boston, Massachusetts.