He will probably, based upon local laws, be put through a drug rehab program
even though he was dealing.  Gretchen was distributing mushrooms when she
was arrested so if she doesn't make it through this final program, or if she
screws up any where along the way, she will likely go back to a judge and be
put on several years of probation and then, of course, she maintains her
felony record for the rest of her life.  If she can make it through this
diversionary program, her record will be erased.  Colorado has this stupid
three strikes and your out law but if she has to go back before a judge,
they send her to prison.  They often, out here, send them for six months,
let them out, put them right back into the same old drug rehab programs, and
if they screw up again, they ship them back to prison for a few more months,
or generally, by that time, for a couple of years or more based upon the
original charges.  Distributing isn't good, of course, but he is going to
find out.  Gretchen is doing better but still struggling.  they know how to
beat the urine analysis checks, too, unless they do a mouth swab and then
they can't beat it.  Gretchen has been drinking lately but so far has beat
the U A samples she has been giving.  She broke up with her unsaved
boyfriend because she wants to do what's right but the drink has been
substituted for the drugs.  Gretchen's drug of choice, of course, is meth.
Crack ain't nothing to sneeze at either, of course.  Only 1 out of 500
people ever go straight, Gretchen's diversion officer told her and this lady
is a born again Christian and has talked about coming to our church.  Mostly
likely, Chris will be put on a drug rehab program, and he'll have to pay for
his own classes, and if they offer a diversion program, that will run his
bill up to 4 to 5 grand over a two year period.  It is sink or swim by that
time.  In Gretchen's recent drug rehab classes, all 30 of the people have
failed many of their weekly UAs.  Keep in mind, this is after Gretchen spent
9 months at a Christian drug rehab church.  She told me the other night that
she honestly believes she has gotten more out of the drug classes than the
Christian home because Victory Outreach had no personal Bible studies and
absolutely no follow up once Gretchen was out.  Don't go jumping right into
putting him into some Christian outfit right off the bat either.  You'll go
broke over night and the chances of him coming clean is slim.  Teen
challenge out here is getting 1700 a month per kid in their drug residential
drug home program.

Phil.