After multiple starts and stops, a long-awaited Aroostook County Adult Drug Treatment and Recovery Court will offer alternatives to prison for people struggling with addiction who commit drug-related crimes.
The Maine Judicial Branch, in collaboration with partnering state departments and agencies, announced this week the launch of the special docket court that expands access to treatment and recovery services in northern Maine.
Until this week’s announcement, recovery behind bars was the only option for people in Aroostook County. And despite the highly touted success of drug treatment courts in other Maine locations, Aroostook County was the last remaining judicial jurisdiction without one.
Drug treatment courts, known in Maine as specialty dockets, offer an alternative to jail for people who are dealing with addiction. Applicants must go through a screening process and plead guilty to their alleged crimes.
Getting to this point has taken a long time.
In 2021, Gov. Janet Mills’ opioid action plan recommended adding drug courts on the midcoast and in Aroostook County during 2022. The midcoast court, serving Knox, Waldo, Lincoln and Sagadahoc counties, was created through a U.S. Department of Justice grant.
In 2022, the Maine Judicial Branch was awarded $1.1 million from the Department of Justice to establish and run adult drug treatment courts in Judicial Regions 3, Oxford and Franklin counties, and Region 6, Lincoln, Knox, Waldo and Sagadahoc counties.
These grant funds allowed the Maine Judicial Branch to operate adult drug treatment courts in 15 of the 16 counties in Maine, according to a 2022 release.
Former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, proposed legislation in 2023 to establish an adult drug treatment court in Aroostook County.
Jackson said at the time that treatment and recovery courts have proven to be a critical tool for families and communities statewide in combating the opioid epidemic.
“For too long, Aroostook County was the only county in the state without a drug treatment court. This spring, that finally changes,” Jackson, who is now seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, told the Bangor Daily News on Tuesday.
When Jackson initially put the bill forward, Aroostook County District Attorney Todd Collins said that while it got things started, they realized they needed more information, especially because there are 6,671 square miles in The County.
A development committee made up of law enforcement, prosecutors, defense attorneys, probation, court officials and treatment professionals met for months in 2023 and 2024 to consider all the requirements for the Aroostook court.
In 2024, the state Legislative Judiciary Committee voted in support of making addiction treatment programs like drug court available throughout the state and accessible to rural residents.
The committee’s unanimous vote on an amended version of LD 1596, An Act to Facilitate the Creation of an Aroostook County Drug Treatment Court, was approved by the House and Senate and Gov. Janet Mills signed the bill on March 6, 2024, but it was not funded along with several other bills during that legislative session.
This week’s announcement reflects a coordinated statewide effort to address addiction through the criminal justice system, according to Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Valerie Stanfill.
The treatment court will be at the Caribou District Court and will serve eligible participants from throughout Aroostook County.
Once admitted into treatment court, participants are required to meet with the presiding judge regularly, maintain weekly case manager and probation contact, stay employed, pay fines, remain sober and submit to random drug testing, according to guidelines.
Referrals to the Aroostook County Adult Drug Treatment and Recovery Court may be submitted to the court clerk starting June 1. The first court session is scheduled for July 9.
The Treatment Court Referral Form (CR-234) is available on the Forms page of the Judicial Branch website.
Attorneys, probation officers, law enforcement, treatment providers, family members and others may submit referrals for people who are suspected of struggling with serious addiction who are unlikely to succeed under traditional supervision.
Referrals may be submitted for people with cases pending in any court within Aroostook County, regardless of the specific courthouse location.
“From the beginning, this effort has been about helping folks from The County involved in the criminal justice system with substance use disorder access the treatment and recovery programs necessary to restore and rebuild their lives,” Jackson said. “I’m so grateful to everyone who helped make the Aroostook County Treatment Court a reality.”
