main idea?ELIGIBILITY FOR DRUG COURT. Drug courts are specifically for nonviolent drug offenders with at least a moderate substance abuse problem. The offenders may be misdemeanants or felons, and they must voluntarily agree to participate. An initial substance abuse assessment determines eligibility for program participation (Alarid, Montemayor, & Dannhaus, 2012). About half of drug courts are pre-adjudication, which means that upon successful completion of a drug court program, charges are dismissed. Post-adjudication drug courts usually mean that following a plea of guilty the sentence remains, but the defendant stays out of jail. If pre-adjudication offenders withdraw or are terminated from a program without successful completion, they are charged and tried for the original offense and sentenced accordingly