Galen Lamont Turner touched a star Wednesday. He wasn't surprised to see it was embossed with his name.

        “I learned to stand still and let the storm pass over,” he said. “Sometimes you want to run and hide. But I've learned that when things get hard you don't run, you stand your ground.”

Hope Taft (left) at Wednesday's Drug Court ceremony with 1997 graduate Janice L. and Judge Kim Wilson Burke (right). (Craig Ruttle photo) | ZOOM |

        A former drug addict who was caught buying crack in Over-the-Rhine, Mr. Turner was one of about 40 people who graduated Wednesday night from Hamilton County's Drug Court.

        The 37-year-old Fairfield man smiled broadly as he looked at the star-shaped plaque that symbolized the pain, hard work and success that marked his time in an 18-month treatment program ordered by the court.

        Married with three children, he said he can pass what he has learned in treatment on to his children.

        “God loves them. And they can do anything. They don't have to be what other people think they should be. It pays to be honest. They can be themselves,” he said.

        Installed as a full-time part of Common Pleas Court in 1996, Hamilton County's Drug Court is part of a national program geared to treating and rehabilitating nonviolent drug abusers.

        It operates on the idea that drug offenders commit crimes to support their addictions. Wipe out the addictions and you've effectively ended the cycle of crime.

        Since its creation, Drug Court, now headed by Common Pleas Judge Kim Wilson Burke, who took over from Judge Deidra Hair, has maintained significant success rates.

        As of 2002, the court boasts a 91 percent success rate, one of the highest in the country. It has graduated more than 800 people with only 74 re-offenders.

        It maintains the support of Hamilton County Commissioner John Dowlin, a longtime advocate, and has attracted notice from Ohio first lady Hope Taft, who spoke at Wednesday's graduation.

        “You are proof that Ohio's drug courts work,” Mrs. Taft told the graduates. “You are proof that Ohio is on the right path. You are proof that lives and lifestyles can be changed for the better. You are people who know the benefits of taking personal responsibility and accepting the consequences of your actions.

        “There are people from all levels ... pulling for you, who know you have turned your lives around and will make a difference in the lives of those around you,” she added.

        Also in support of the program is Grammy award-winning entertainer Bootsy Collins.

        The Cincinnati funk icon manages a gospel group called Second Chance that performs at the graduations. At Wednesday's ceremony, Mr. Collins hugged each of the graduates as they received their plaques.

        Along with the graduates and their supporters, the audience that packed the gymnasium of a Burnet Avenue treatment center was comprised of past Drug Court success stories.

        Sharon Blankenship graduated in 1999. She has returned to every graduation since her own for support and rejuvenation.

        A former prostitute with a crack habit, she now works as a supervisor, attends church and is engaged to be married.

        She stares daily at her star-shaped plaque that she keeps on her bedroom dresser.

        “Coming here keeps me clean,” said the 45-year-old Walnut Hills resident.

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