Yamhill County
Juvenile Department

Juvenile Drug Court

   Drug Court Conditions    Terms and Conditions of Standard Probation

The Yamhill County Juvenile Drug Court Program is a cooperative effort between the Circuit Court, the Juvenile Department and the adolescent Chemical Dependency and Mental Health programs. Members of the team, excluding the Court, staff clients on a weekly basis to determine the appropriate course of action, both clinically and legally, to pursue and recommend to the court. The Court reviews the progress of the participants on a weekly basis, utilizing input from the staff, the youth and their parents to make its decision.

Drug Court differs from the traditional court process in that one judge hears all the cases, becoming familiar with each participant. Drug Court is an arena where the youth have an experience of support and praise for their achievements to compliment the more traditional sanction oriented approach.

All participants must meet the criteria for out patient chemical dependency treatment and be on court probation; the criminal conduct must be secondary to their substance abuse. Both the youth and their parents are required to remain for all of the days’ Drug Court hearings, sharing the experience as a group.

Drug Court meets every Monday at 4:00 pm in the County Courthouse. The youth initially are required to appear each week; as they successfully progress through the program their time commitment is reduced to bi-weekly and then monthly.

In addition to their out patient chemical dependency services, the Drug Court youth may be asked to attend a weekly process group geared towards addressing issues relating to their participation in the program. Referrals may be made to the mental health program for individual and family therapy when appropriate to help the client and their family.

Clink on the link to view a comprehensive federal report on Juvenile Drug Courts prepared by the Department of Justice.