Choices and Consequences: Experience the Journey as I Finally Arrive at Peace [Print Replica] Kindle Edition

I have known and worked with Todd Crandell and Racing for Recovery for many years. As a former prosecutor and longtime criminal defense attorney here in Northwest Ohio, I have seen the dramatic shift from punishment via incarceration to effective treatment methods in our justice system. This is true on a state and local level. In many ways, the legal system is just now catching up to what Racing for Recovery has been focused on from its very start—treating the root cause of addiction, rather than merely treating the addiction itself.This system-wide change in focusing on the underlying cause of addiction has only taken place in recent years. As opiate addiction reached crisis levels, the legal system desperately looked for new ways to change the cycle of incarceration and death. Racing for Recovery was ahead of the curve in understanding that addiction is rooted in deeper personal issues. The Racing for Recovery Model has become a framework for other agencies and courts to utilize.However, there is a natural tension among the three parts of the system involved with an individual’s life: the State, the defense attorneys, and the treatment providers. The State (prosecution and judges), on some level, need to punish people for illegal behavior. The defense attorney is tasked with minimizing punishment. Treatment providers like Racing for Recovery want to engage the person with the necessary services to find sobriety and stability. Each entity operating for different aims, despite really wanting the same outcome.Fortunately, both the State and defense attorneys have come to see that the old methods weren’t always effective. Tragic results of cyclical drug and alcohol abuse have led deaths to spike in alarming numbers. The Racing for Recovery model, developed by Todd Crandell, took the core idea of addressing the underlying issues, and made it part of the vernacular of both the State and the Defense.No longer merely wanting to punish, nor wanting to skirt the issues, both sides have often joined together in a united approach to truly solve these pressing issues. Of course, both sides fulfill their professional roles in these matters. Drug dealers and those responsible for more serious behavior are subject to punishment, and defense attorneys serve to safeguard constitutional rights and work for their clients to be certain the charges are merited. But where warranted, the clear effort is to save lives—not waste them—through treatment and counseling of the whole person in the Racing for Recovery model.Stevin Groth, Attorney at Law Read more