It’s no secret the ongoing opioid epidemic has ravaged nearly every corner of the Hoosier state, sending thousands to court on drug charges, ballooning the number of children in need of services and more. But even as the drug crisis strains Indiana’s judicial resources, Chief Justice Loretta Rush said new court programs and technology have positioned the judiciary to meet the crisis head-on and lead the state into a “hope-filled future.”
Indiana residents and legal professionals this month can offer their perspectives on proposed amendments to the rules of the state’s problem-solving courts and other administrative and trial rules .
The Indiana Supreme Court has approved the creation of a domestic violence court in Delaware County.
The number of drug courts operating in the United States is 3,057, a 24 percent increase in the last five years, according to the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.
Indiana’s first commercial courts are announced a week after Rush highlights problem-solving approaches in her annual State of the Judiciary address.
A Lawrence County schoolteacher who lost her job after she fell victim to heroin addiction is emblematic of Indiana’s problem-solving courts that Chief Justice Loretta Rush said are helping communities statewide deal with a crippling drug crisis.
Commercial courts heralded by Indiana Chief Justice Loretta Rush in her first State of the Judiciary address could be in business soon, with the first pilots launching as early as this summer, according to judges and lawyers involved in developing the plans.
More veterans courts are popping up around the state, with a focus on individual treatment and establishing mentorships.
A new Monroe County mental health court is aimed at keeping people mentally stable and out of trouble and the community safe, officials said.
Marion County plans to start a veterans court next year, a specialized problem-solving court that will allow diversion of lower-level criminal offenses for those who served in the military.
A woman who missed several drug court mental health therapy sessions failed on appeal to prove she was wrongly terminated from the problem-solving court.
A problem-solving court that could offer diversion programs for veterans charged with minor offenses is under consideration in Noblesville.
Allen County will gavel in its veterans’ court Nov. 12 and join a growing list of Indiana jurisdictions creating the problem-solving court especially to serve military veterans.
Allen Superior Court is, again, offering for public comment proposed changes to the fees for its alternative court programs.
The Indiana Senate passed several House bills Tuesday, including legislation expanding when a person can participate in a problem-solving court program. The House of Representatives returned bills on children in need of services petitions and prosecutor pensions back to the Senate.
Proposals to expand services offered by problem-solving courts and to attempt to curtail fraudulent liens and other tactics of so-called sovereign citizens will be heard Wednesday by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Indiana House Bill 1016 proposes to let court staff provide some rehabilitative services and collect fees for them.
The state’s only community court marks its 10th anniversary this year with a celebration planned for Sept. 29.
Gov. Mitch Daniels has signed into law changes to various courts around the state, as well as the legislation that removes age restrictions of certain judges who run for office.
The Court Alcohol and Drug Program Advisory Committee and the Problem-Solving Courts Committee of the Judicial Conference of Indiana are seeking public comment on the new rules governing problem-solving courts and amendments to the court-administered drug and alcohol programs.