PERRY COUNTY − When a new participant enters New Direction Drug Court in Perry County, the first priority is to change that person’s mindset and get them into recovery, but the changes each individual makes goes far beyond their own being.
From the start of the specialized docket in 2016, Judge Dean Wilson knew the success of his program would require a strong partnership between the court and the surrounding community. Initially, there was skepticism about working with people in addiction, but time has proven those doubts wrong.
Each graduate has left an impact on their communities, both at home and in the workplace as they’ve overcome their addiction, found employment and restored familial relationships.
“I didn’t think I would make it this far in life,” 25-year-old Caleb Ruffin said at graduation. The Crooksville native started using drugs at the age of 9, beginning with marijuana. At the age of 11, Ruffin tried pills and moved on to fentanyl and methamphetamine at 18.
Ruffin started just for fun. He was addicted by his teenage years and felt like an outcast amongst his peers. “I just went harder and harder. Pills were too expensive,” Ruffin said. “If I was awake, I was high. If I wasn’t high, I was miserable.”
Ruffin can’t remember at least three years of his life.
His friend, 27-year-old Kristen McKinniss, took a similar path into addiction. She started at 13 with marijuana and transitioned to pills around 19 before using heroin, fentanyl and meth. “I had a lot of mental health issues,” McKinniss said. “Instead of dealing with that the right way, I used drugs to numb.”
McKinnis had her first son when she was 16. “I dropped a lot of things to be a mom,” she said. It meant missing out on a lot of the typical teenage experience. “Once his dad and I split up, I think I took partying to a new level,” McKinnis explained. “I kinda got lost in doing that.”
The consequences of her addiction eventually meant losing custody of her son when he turned 5 and going nine straight months without seeing him at all. “I hurt a lot of people,” McKinnis said. “I did a lot of things that I normally wouldn’t have done.”
While on drugs, McKinnis became a violent person and was charged for domestic violence and assault. After failing a urine screen, she spent more than a month in jail. When she returned, her youngest son didn’t remember her. But there are also times with her four children that McKinnis can’t recall because of her addiction. “I felt like I was watching a movie,” she said. “When you get sober, you have missed so much because you have been high. Your kids look different.”
Ruffin was caught with a loaded needle when he entered the criminal justice system. He began drug court but only lasted a week before getting caught with fake urine during a drug screen and was sent to jail. After nearly nine months in rehab, Ruffin was ready to take drug court seriously.
McKinnis tried getting sober four or five times on her own but never had any accountability. That changed once she was placed in New Direction Drug Court. “When I first started drug court, I did not think I was going to make it. Not just day to day, it was second by second,” she said.
Over time, the question of if she’d graduate became a statement of when she would graduate.
Finding stability
McKinnis now has her life back after completing drug court. She went from not seeing her oldest son to now having unsupervised visits with him three days a week. She is proving to everyone around her that the person she was while on drugs is not the person she is now. “She’s come a long way for sure,” Ruffin said of McKinnis.
For Ruffin, life in recovery is finding out who he is. “I just try to be a little bit better than I was yesterday,” he said. “I have to try to find peace with boredom.” That means being able to enjoy being by himself without having people around him.
What participants in Perry County’s drug court hear over and over is “people, places and things.” To be successful, they must separate themselves from the life they knew in addiction and find new ways to spend their time. For Ruffin, it’s working out and playing disc golf.
Another key component of the New Direction Drug Court is finding stable employment, not only to give the participant a sense of purpose, but also as a way to give back to the community.
When Judge Wilson started the court, he had to convince local businesses to partner with him. “We now have those employers calling us,” he said. Wilson believes taking pride in one’s self is a big factor in the success of his graduates.
“One of the goals with me is to treat you with the dignity and the respect that you deserve. I believe in you,” Wilson told his final graduating class, as Wilson will soon retire. Those members include Keith Goldsmith, Raylene Shick, Kristen McKinniss, Caleb Ruffin, Drew Pierce, Wyatt Wiseman, Fawn Pidock and Danny Price.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
