Tuesday, October 21, 2008 A round of applause welcomed a middle-aged man wearing a worn-down blue jacket to Onondaga County Drug Court this afternoon. This is a ritual for a new member. It's the beginning of his second chance, with Judge Jeffrey Merrill presiding.
Over 90 minutes this afternoon, Merrill welcomed five new individuals to drug court while at other times he scolded members who had failed recent drug tests. With a drug court in every county across the state of New York, Onondaga County's is one of the largest, with approximately 300 people in the program right now, Merrill said after court to a group of student reporters. Voluntarily, people sign a contract to be admitted into the program. If they refuse, they can go to trial.
"This is a chance for you to get your life back in your own hands again," Merrill said to the man in the jacket.
Merrill has been the presiding judge in drug court since 2000. He calls himself "the father in an enormously large dysfunctional family." He pleads with offenders to be honest with him, saying the quickest way to get locked up is by not being truthful. He looks highly upon good attendance in court, and a perfect record may even earn you another round of applause.
Six out of ten people will successfully make it through the program while the others will see the inside of a prison cell, Kim Kozlowski, the Program Coordinator, said.
"It's a wonderful thing," said Merrill to the student reporters. "We can change people's lives."
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