(a) The Chief Court Administrator may establish in any court location or juvenile matters court location a docket separate from other criminal or juvenile matters for the hearing of criminal or juvenile matters in which a defendant is a drug-dependent person, as defined in section 21a-240. The docket shall be available to offenders who could benefit from placement in a substance abuse treatment program.

(b) The Chief Court Administrator shall establish, within the appropriations designated in public act 03-1 of the June 30 special session* for said purpose, one or more drug courts for the hearing of criminal or juvenile matters in which a defendant is a drug-dependent person, as defined in section 21a-240, who could benefit from placement in a substance abuse treatment program.

(P.A. 95-131; P.A. 97-248, S. 6, 12; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 164.)

*Note: Public act 03-1 of the June 30 special session is entitled “An Act Concerning Expenditures and Revenue for the Biennium Ending June 30, 2005”. (See Reference Table captioned “Public Acts of June 30, 2003” in Volume 16 which indicates the appropriations sections in said act.)

History: P.A. 97-248 replaced provision requiring Chief Court Administrator to designate a court location in which a pilot program for a separate drug docket is to be established with provision authorizing said administrator to establish in any geographical area court location or juvenile matters court location such a docket, specified that the docket shall be separate from other juvenile matters, authorized the docket to hear juvenile matters in which a defendant is a drug-dependent person, specified that the availability of the docket to offenders 16 to years of age is only in a geographical area court location and deleted former Subsec. (b) requiring the implementation of the pilot program and a report re its expansion, effective July 1, 1997; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and amended said Subsec. to delete provision that limited the docket to a “geographical area” court location and revise provision re availability of the docket by replacing “shall be available to, but not be limited to, offenders who are sixteen to twenty-one years of age and who could benefit from placement in a substance abuse treatment program” with “shall be available to offenders who could benefit from placement in a substance abuse treatment program” and added new Subsec. (b) re establishment of one or more drug courts, effective August 20, 2003.