Criminal justice client rehabs are available being a considerably better option than prison time or heavy fines for those who have already been convicted of any kind of alcohol or drug related crime. As an example, somebody who has been in prison for driving drunk of drugs or alcohol may qualify to get rehab services for problem rather than serving time in jail. The judge may even order the individual receive rehabilitation, either alone or in addition to other consequences. Very first time offenders in particular are often given the opportunity to go with a criminal justice client rehab as an alternative to other sentencing, and it is well-advised they benefit from it if it's an alternative. The theory behind criminal justice client rehabs is it is much more effective and efficient to invest time and energy into treatment than punishment. Much research has been carried out to find out how effective this approach is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the criminal justice client returns or not to criminal justice system following rehabilitation. The signs and indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients that experience rehabilitation have a much better probability of remaining out of the system following treatment.