Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered like a considerably better option than prison time or heavy fines for those who have already been convicted of any type of alcohol or drug related crime. As an example, someone who has been in prison for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may be eligible for rehab services for problem instead of serving time in prison. The judge may even order the individual receive treatment, either alone or along with other sentencing. First time offenders in particular in many cases are given the opportunity to pick a criminal justice client rehab as opposed to other sentencing, and it is highly recommended that they benefit from it if it's a possibility. The theory behind criminal justice client rehabs is it is much more efficient and effective to invest time and energy into rehabilitation than punishment. Much research has been done to see how effective this strategy is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the individual returns or not to criminal justice system following treatment. The signs and indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients that do experience rehab have a much better possibility of remaining out of the system after rehab.