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Welcome to the Treatment Courts of the New York City Criminal Court

Here you will find information on the nine drug courts. Criminal Court operates in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. Drug courts are a partnership between the Court, prosecutors, law enforcement, defense bar and treatment and education providers. Each drug court places non-violent, drug-addicted offenders into treatment in an effort to break the cycle of drug abuse, addiction, crime and jail. While each drug court has the same goals and uses the same guiding principles, each one operates in its own unique way. These pages will give you information on individual programs, including rules of participation and results. We hope you find this information helpful!

Lisa Lindsay
Citywide Problem-Solving Court Coordinator

Administration

100 Centre St.
New York, NY 10013

Phone: 646-386-4600 

Fax: 646-386-4395 

For non-Treatment Court related matters, please visit www.nycourts.gov or
call 1-800-COURTNY

Treatment Courts Overview

Treatment Courts have their roots in an idea that was developed in Miami, Florida in 1989. In response to a crack epidemic, jurists in Miami realized that the endless cycle of addiction and recidivism needed to be broken to reduce drug use and drug-related crime.

The basic concept behind treatment courts involves a dramatic intervention by the court in cooperation with an entire team including the defense, prosecution, treatment, education, and law enforcement. In return for a promise of a reduced sentence, appropriate non-violent addicted offenders are given the option of entering voluntarily into court-supervised treatment.

The rules and conditions of participation are clearly stated in a contract entered into by the defendant, the defense attorney, the district attorney, and the court. The results have been overwhelmingly positive, and treatment courts have gone into operation all over the country.

New York State leads the nation in the expansion and institutionalization of treatment courts into daily court operations. Chief Judge Judith Kaye recognized the benefits of the program and had the vision to ask that it be implemented in every jurisdiction in the State.

The Office of Court Drug Treatment Programs (OCDTP), directed by Deputy Chief Administrative Judge Judy Harris Kluger, is currently involved in an intensive effort to make court drug treatment programs available statewide.

Program Snapshot as of January 1, 2016

  • 141 treatment courts were in operation.
  • 89 were in the criminal courts.
  • 33 were in the family courts.
  • 4 were in the town and village courts.
  • 15 treatment courts were focused solely on juveniles.
  • 25 community teams were engaged in the planning process to open courts in the coming year.
  • 93,000 individuals had participated in New York State court drug treatment programs.
  • 42,800 participants had graduated.
  • 867 drug-free babies had been born to drug treatment court participants while in the program.

Each treatment court in New York is locally based and reflects the legal culture of the community. Support for the program comes from local communities, the Unified Court System budget, and the federal government. Statewide standards are facilitated by the intense training each team receives and the oversight provided through continuous evaluation and assistance from the OCDTP.

Judy Harris Kluger
Deputy Chief Administrative Judge, Court Operations & Planning