Five graduate from local drug court

Five men graduated from a local second-chance program that even the judge admits is tough to complete.

The Dublin-Laurens Drug Court recently held its latest graduation in the Laurens County Commissioners office. Superior Court Judge Trey Taylor praised graduates Tamargo Wells (veterans treatment court), Stephen Dixon (accountability court) and Devin Mullis, Bill Madison, Doryan Gorham (all from drug court) for following all of the steps to complete graduation. 

Taylor said alumni, family and friends of the graduates attended, along with Drug Court participants, and heard from keynote speaker Clay Tapley, Dublin Judicial Circuit public defender. The participants are required to attend Drug Court graduations.

“If they go into the program and successfully complete the program, that will resolve their criminal charges,” Taylor said. “For some of them, it is part of their plea deal that they have to successfully complete the drug court program. I’m super proud of these guys. It’s an opportunity for them to change the trajectory of their lives. They can tackle their addiction and deal with the problems that have plagued them, often times, for years upon years. It’s really a great opportunity for them to put their criminal charges behind them.” 

The cases are identified by the local district attorney’s office. 

“As an accountability court team, we staff those cases and decide which people are appropriate to participate in our court,” Taylor said. “They work the program from anywhere to 18 months to two years. They are required to a drug test two to three times a week. They go to multiple treatment meetings per week. They have accountability components that require them to do something every single day. It is a lot of work on their part. It’s not easy.” 

In fact, it may have been easier to be on probation.

“They don’t get the benefit of just having their charges dismissed,” the judge said. “The program is pretty tough and they have to work. To be honest, some of the participants I didn’t think they were going to make it. At some point they just buckled down and got with the program.”

Then there are those who never cause a problem.

“They just zoom right through,” Taylor said. 

Moral Recognition Therapy is a 12-step program participants have to successfully complete.

“It helps them self-evaluate and identify problems and help them develop a plan to help them move forward,” Taylor said. “It is very in depth.” 

Taylor and attorneys involved in the Drug Court do not receive payment for this program.

“We do this because we think it’s a good thing for the community,” Taylor said. “We want to have this opportunity available for those people who are willing to take advantage of it. It requires a lot of buy-in for them. It’s an incredibly valuable thing for  those who take advantage of it.

“I’m incredibly grateful and thankful for the support with get from the district attorney’s office for this program,” he added. “They have dedicated staff members who work hand-in-hand with us as do the public defenders who work hand-in-hand with us also to make sure our program is a success and these folks have opportunity to work the program and change their lives. The commissioners are the ones who provide us the funding component on this. Without the commissioners’ support of this program, it would cease to exist.”