Richard S. Gebelein

Drug courts aim to rehabilitate criminals guilty of minor drug offenses by combining treatment, testing, and judicial supervision in lieu of incarceration. According to Richard S. Gebelein in the following viewpoint, such courts were established in response to a dramatic escalation of drug cases beginning in the 1980s. Gebelein argues that drug courts have proved successful in rehabilitating minor drug offenders. However, he cautions that success rates are likely to fall as more varied criminals are entered into drug court programs. Gebelein is an associate judge in the Superior Court of Delaware and the founder of Delaware’s Statewide Drug Court.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What percentage of Delaware’s prisoners needed substance abuse treatment at the time the state’s...