An arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol/drugs can be one the most humiliating and scary moments of a person’s life. I have advised plenty of clients who thought that as a result of a DUI they would be sent to prison, lose their job, or have their children taken away. While it is true that in Pennsylvania penalties for certain DUI offenses can be harsh, such as when someone causes an accident when driving drunk or is a repeat offender, for the person without any prior DUI convictions, there exists a program that can provide him/her a second chance at a criminal record-free life after a first DUI arrest. It is called Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition.
Commonly referred to as ARD, the program was designed to divert first-time offenders from the overcrowded penal system and to speed up the court process for one of Pennsylvania’s most common criminal offenses. With the rate of recidivism for DUI offenders going through the roof in the 1980′s, the idea was that instead of clogging up the prisons with drunks and drug addicts, the judicial system could attempt to address the real problem by treating an offender’s addiction and/or poor decision-making abilities, so as to keep them out of the system thereafter. Meanwhile, offenders who just made a REALLY bad choice one night, wouldn’t have their lives turned upside down, their clean records blemished, and their employment jeopardized. It is a program unique to Pennsylvania and one that has been very effective. Continue reading
