In this article we report the results of a comprehensive study into the effects of the NSW Drug Court on participant health and social functioning. 

Drug Courts are premised on the assumption that if an offender’s crime is drug-related, reducing their drug consumption should reduce their involvement in drug-related crime. Participants in Drug Court programs internationally are typically subject to close monitoring, including frequent meetings with the Drug Court team and frequent testing for drug use. Progress toward abstinence is also usually rewarded in some way, while relapse or non-compliance with program conditions typically attracts a sanction (e.g. a short stay in prison). Beyond these common features there are many differences, including the point at which entry into the Drug Court program occurs (pre or post sentence), the length of the program, the eligibility requirements, the type(s) of treatment available and the sanctions imposed for non-compliance with program conditions (Collins, Agnew-Pauley & Soderholm 2019). 

The available evidence suggests that Drug Courts are effective in reducing re-offending. A review conducted for the Campbell Collaboration by Mitchell et al. (2012) concluded that Drug Courts are reducing adult re-offending rates by up to 12 percentage points. Earlier reviews of Drug Court effectiveness have also been favourable (US Government Accountability Office 2011; Wilson, Mitchell & MacKenzie 2006; Belenko 1998). In Australia, significant reductions in re-offending were found by Lind et al. (2002) in their randomised trial evaluation of the NSW Drug Court program and by Weatherburn et al. (2008, 2020) in two follow-up evaluations of the same program. Kornhauser (2018) concluded in his review of Australian drug court programs that they reduce re-offending more than conventional sanctions, although he cautioned that certainty on this issue should be ‘tempered by mixed results and methodological limitations’ (Kornhauser 2018, p. 76). 

So far, however, there has been little research into whether participation in a Drug Court program results in improvements in health and social functioning. This is surprising because dependence on illicit drugs is typically injurious to both (Darke et al. 2019, Daley 2013). The research gap is unfortunate because the social and economic value of a Drug Court (or any offender rehabilitation intervention) depends not just on whether it reduces the risk of re-offending but whether it reduces the likelihood of imprisonment or improves outcomes in areas such as health and well-being, child welfare and employment.