HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Reno County’s drug court program has been in place for a little more than three years. Now 
the U.S. Department of Justice wants to know if it works and how much, if any, money it’s saving the state and county.
Reno County Commissioners will be asked next week to provide funding for a study requested by the Bureau of Justice Assistance on the program. The program provides drug offenders the opportunity to right the ship and get their lives back on track, thus avoiding prison time. The study will be used to compare the Drug Court to other peer programs, and provide cost comparisons of the program, versus incarceration. The study will be done by Dr. Melissa Walker of Wichita State University at a cost of nearly $40,000.
The study would be funded through unexpended Federal Grant funds and Special Alcohol Tax funds.