Family Treatment Drug Courts

A number of communities are developing Family Treatment Drug Courts (FTDCs), alternatively known as Dependency Drug Courts. FTDCs are an increasingly popular method of (a) meeting the requirements of ASFA and (b) enhancing functional status and reunification success among families involved in child welfare and affected by substance use disorders.

Family Treatment Drug Court Evaluation Final Report
Presents the findings of a national evaluation of Family Treatment Drug Courts (FTDCs), conducted by NPC Research. The evaluation examined whether court, child welfare, and treatment outcomes differed for families served through FTDCs as compared to families who received traditional child welfare services.

Dependency Drug Court/STARS (Specialized Treatment And Recovery Services) Program Facts and Information
Provides an overview of the Sacramento County Dependency Drug Court and STARS (Specialized Treatment And Recovery Services) Program.

The Sacramento Dependency Drug Court: Development and Outcomes
Boles, S., Young, N., Moore, T., & DiPirro-Beard, S.
Child Maltreatment 2007; 12; 161
Article that provides a description of various types of DDCs (Dependency Drug Court) and reports 24-month reunification rates from the Sacramento DDC. Results indicated that Dependency Drug Court participants had higher rates of treatment participation than did comparison participants. In addition, at 24 months, 42% of the DDC children had reunified versus 27.2% of the comparison children.

Sacramento County Dependency Drug Court: The First Four Years
Evaluation study that determines the impact to parental involvement and engagement in treatment and child placement outcomes associated with outcomes of participation in the Sacramento Dependency Drug Court.

An Overview of Operational Family Dependency Treatment Courts
Judge Nicolette M. Pach (ret.)
Drug Court Review, Volume VI, Issue 1, Summer 2008
Establishes an agenda for a national conversation about family dependency treatment court best practices and circumstantial permutations.

Ensuring Sustainability for Drug Courts: An Overview of Funding Strategies
Reilly & Pierre-Lawson
National Drug Court Institute, Monograph Series 8, April 2008
Assist courts in creating a sustainability plan that moves past initial implementation into long-term viability.

Family Dependency Treatment Court Fact Sheet
National Drug Court Institute, June 2006
Brief overview of the Drug Court Model in child maltreatment cases.