The mission of the Adult Treatment Court is to provide a cost-effective alternative to incarceration through a long-term, judicially monitored regimen of treatment for non-violent substance dependent offenders.  The program returns clean and sober individuals to the community after equipping them to maintain their sobriety and improve the quality of their lives. 

The program follows a post-plea, pre-sentence adjudication model. Participants are admitted to the program when they enter guilty plea(s) to current eligible charges. Participants acknowledge prior to entering a Treatment Court guilty plea that they will not be allowed to withdraw the guilty plea. Sentencing will be deferred pending completion of the Treatment Court program.  Upon successful completion of the program, including payments of fines, costs, and restitution, the participant’s charges will be dismissed and expunged. Failure to successfully complete the program will result in the participant being sentenced. 

Participants may also be admitted to Treatment Court as a condition of County Restrictive Probation (CRP) if they are pending revocation because they have been charged with new offense(s) or because of technical violation(s).  If approved for Treatment Court, the CRP judge will retain the participant in the CRP and make completion of Treatment Court a requirement of the CRP sentence.  Participants who enter Treatment Court as a condition of CRP will not have the underlying charge(s) expunged.

The program is divided into five phases lasting a minimum of 15 months.   The total time spent in the program is based on each participant’s progress.  Each phase consists of specific treatment goals, activities and requirements that must be met before participants can move to the next phase.    Moving into the next phase is not automatic and will be determined by the Treatment Court judge according to individual progress, with recommendations from the Treatment Court team.

Treatment Court is a hybrid DUI/drug court program. Therefore, there are two target populations, which are identified through a two-step process of sentencing guidelines and risk assessment tool. 

Track 1 - DUI Court Population

Eligible applicants are at a high risk of committing DUI offenses as evidenced by the number of prior offenses. Sentencing guidelines for current offense(s) will result in a long county or a state sentence, at least 12 months at the low end of the standard range. Current offenses are also ineligible to be considered for County Restrictive Probation sentences.

Track 2 - Drug Court Population

Sentencing guidelines for current offense(s) will result in a long county or a state sentence, at least 12 months at the low end of the standard range. Current offenses are also ineligible to be considered for County Restrictive Probation sentences.

Qualifying Factors for Adult Treatment Court

• Applicant is a Cumberland County resident, age 25 years or older.
• Applicant has open, unsentenced, criminal docket(s) in Cumberland County.
• Applicant has a verifiable history of substance abuse and offense(s) are related to substance abuse. Conduct giving rise to the crime must be attributable to characteristics of a substance use disorder.
• Has a non-violent criminal history.
• Voluntarily agrees to participate in, and be subject to rules, regulations and sanctions of Treatment Court.

Submit Adult Treatment Court applications as follows:

• Complete and sign the application and the appropriate Release of Information Waiver. 
  Adult Treatment Court Application
• Forward entire completed application to:
  Paul Polensky, Coordinator
  Criminal Justice Services
  20 North Hanover Street, Suite 300
  Carlisle, PA 17013
  Phone: 717.240.5341
  Fax:  717.240.7791
  Email