A Family Drug Treatment Court, the first of its kind in Anderson County, launched this week, and there will be a ribbon-cutting next week, a press release said.
The Anderson County Family Drug Treatment Court will be called R2: The Recovery and Resilience Program, the press release said.
R2 is a program for juvenile offenders who have substance misuse issues and have not been successful in maintaining drug abstinence. The program is a minimum of nine months and will incorporate treatment, family therapy, and group therapy paired with accountability and goal setting, the press release said.
“By addressing barriers in the home, we will enable adolescents in Anderson County to break free from the grip of generational drug abuse, setting them up to be successful contributors to our society,†said Anderson County Juvenile Court Judge Brian Hunt.
The press release said the program has been a priority for a large number of stakeholders in the community for many years.
“ASAP of Anderson along with Juvenile Court, Anderson County Schools, and Oak Ridge Schools have worked tirelessly to see this program come to fruition,” the press release said.
“The effects of substance misuse are far-reaching and cause stress on individuals, families, and the entire community,” the press release said. “This is especially true when adolescents are involved. There has been a lack of treatment support for adolescents entering the judicial system with substance misuse issues in Anderson County. Until now.”
The program’s mission will be to empower participants to achieve a sustainable, substance-free, healthy lifestyle and develop responsible citizenship through prevention, treatment, education, and coordination of services, the press release said.
Funding for the program comes from United Way of Anderson County, City of Rocky Top, Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club, ASAP of Anderson, Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs, and community members who donated to the “Camping for Community†campaign in October. Successful drug treatment courts in other areas have shown a significant return on investment for their areas, the press release said.
“The Anderson County program has the potential to rehabilitate offenders, reduce truancy, reduce subsequent legal charges, improve school performance and education attainment, improve employability, and reduce the cost to the county as a result of a lesser strain on the judicial system,” the release said.
The ribbon-cutting to celebrate the launch of R2 is scheduled from 3-4:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 11, at Juvenile Court on the first floor of the Robert Jolly Building at 101 South Main Street in Clinton.
For more information, contact ASAP of Anderson at (865) 457-3007 or www.asapofanderson.org. You can also follow @ASAPofAnderson on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
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Gary Love says
Excellent program that should save many lives. Thank you Judge Brian Hunt and everyone involved.