Drug Courts Can Lead to 'Net-Widening' and Increased Arrests

"Net-widening refers to 'an expansion in the number of offenders arrested and charged after the implementation of [a drug court] because well-meaning police and prosecutors now believe there to be something worthwhile that can happen to offenders once they are in the system (i.e., treatment instead of prison).'³⁸⁷ When drug courts are created, police in some cities have arrested more people and prosecutors have filed more charges.³⁸⁸
"The very presence of the drug court, with its significantly increased capacity for processing cases, has caused police to make arrests in, and prosecutors to file, the kinds of $10 and $20 hand-to-hand drug cases that the system simply would not have bothered with before, certainly not as felonies."³⁸⁹"