Criminology

Special courts are bodies that are within the judicial of the government that focus on one area of law or have specially defined powers. A good example of such cases is a drug court. These courts exist for both civil and criminal disputes. Drug courts have the mission of eliminating the abuse of alcohol and other drugs as well as related criminal activity. This essay presents a detailed plan for a research on how effective drug courts are with respect to the impact on the offenders. The intervention focuses on the impact that the treatment plans have on the offenders since these plans are the determinants of the fate of the offender. The treatment plan focuses on each stage of the treatment plan, its importance, the effectiveness, and limitations.

Research questions
How effective are the drug courts with respect to the impact on the offenders Do the drug courts have a positive or negative impact on the offender Is the treatment plan effective What are the various stages of the treatment plan These courts can most probably emerge successful in achieving the set goals if there is maximum cooperation between the stakeholders who include judges, court personnel and the treatment providers. This crime rate is doubtlessly high for one group to handle hence cooperation may provide better results. The treatment plan may perhaps be viewed as the main agenda in trying to correct the past wrongdoings of the offender.

The treatment plan
The drug courts programs are rigorous and the need thorough supervision based on frequent drug testing and appearances in courts. The program entail well structured system of treatment and recovery services. The degree of supervision allows the program to support the recovery process as well as providing room for the supervisors to react quickly in imposing appropriate therapeutic approval or to re-establish criminal proceedings when the key players fail to comply with the program. The treatment program goes through stages before the offender is considered as having complied. Each of the stages lasts for minimum of 90 days. These stages are (Nolan, 2002). The plan outlines the stages of the treatment plan and how they function, but how effective is each stage The plan is characterized by the following stages.

Visits by probation officers
Probation and parole officers investigate and supervise defendants who have not yet been condemned to a term of incarnation. The officers do this job through personal contact with the offenders and their families. The officers meet the offenders at their homes, their places of work or therapy. These officers seek the assistance of other groups and individuals to monitor the behavior of the offender. These groups are community organizations that include religious institutions, neighboring groups, and local people. These groups are requested to report to the officers on the progress of the offender (Hennessy  Pallone). How do these visits help in the offender in becoming a better person

Random drug and alcohol testing
As a requirement of the treatment plan, the drug offenders undergo arbitrary drug and alcohol testing. Receiving treatment in this context requires one to be labeled a drug addict. The offenders are not informed on when the drug test will be carried out and so they have to be prepared for it all the time. This move ensures that the drug offenders resist the temptation of taking drugs since the tests can be carried out any time (Melton  Patrila  Polythress, 2007). This move helps their bodies to function normally even without the influence of the drugs. The medical personnel conducting the test are required to present the reports so that the courts can determine weather the offender is complying with the treatment or not. The random drug testing does help the offenders but to what degree is still a question that remains unanswered.

Appearances at drug courts
The drug offenders are required to make appearances in the drug court as directed by the judiciary. The judge could order the offender to appear in court on a weekly basis. Failure to participate in the treatment program results in a forms trial whereby the judge only reads the police report to determine if the offender committed the offence (Kratocoski, 2004). The judge determines the frequency to which the offender appears in court depending on the degree of drug addiction, offenders who show a higher degree of addiction are required to appear in courts more often than those who appear to be less addicted. The offenders appearance in courts as directed may help the victim in various ways.

Active participation in Narcotics and Alcoholics Anonymous
These non-profit making organizations of men and women have a drug addiction problem. The organization aims to bring together drug addicts so that they can help each other on the drug addiction. Meetings are held regularly and the drug offender is required to attend this meeting as a requirement for the treatment plan. The offenders share their experiences in the meetings and give encouragement to those who are still struggling with the problem of addiction. Interactions are allowed to take place between individuals in the meetings (Nolan, 2002). Confidentiality and anonymity is emphasized in these organizations. This participation may yield both and negative results, which ones

Compliance with treatment plan
The amount of time spent in the program depends on the court. This is a distinct feature of the drug court. Some drug courts recommend the program for one year, others eighteen months minimum, while others permit program completion after nine months. Offenders deterioration may increase the amount of time they are put in probation period. Most of such responses increase the time that the offender spends in court (Kratocoski, 2004). Allowing the offender to extend their deterioration treatments can have a positive impact on their well-being.

Evaluation design
The research will apply secondary data analysis to investigate how effective the treatment plan has been in bringing about the expected results. The secondary data will be acquired from the organizational records that are expected to provide the needed information on how effective the plan has been over the years. This will save time that would otherwise be spent on collecting data because this research entails collecting secondary data. The assessment design will provide the accurate and higher quality data.

Limitations
It may prove hard to have access to the organizational records depending on the management (Nolan, 2002). The concerned management may fail to authorize the release of such records regardless of the fact that it is for a research purpose. The authorities may also provide inadequate information hence leading to erroneous results.

Conclusion
The drug courts function because of the cooperation of the various stakeholders. The most important aspect of the drug courts is the process that is undertaken to correct the behavior of the offender the treatment plan aims at improving the behavior of the offender through its various stages. The effectiveness of the plan is the matter at hand.