Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered being a far better option than prison time or heavy fines for individuals 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 to receive rehab services because of their problem instead of serving time in prison. The judge may even order the individual receive rehab, either alone or along with other consequences. First-time offenders specifically tend to be given the chance to choose a criminal justice client rehab as an alternative to other sentencing, and it is well-advised they take advantage of it when it is an option. The idea behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is way more efficient and effective to invest effort and time into rehabilitation than punishment. Much research has been carried out to find out how effective this method is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the individual returns or not to criminal justice system following treatment. The signs and indicators appear to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients who do take part in treatment have a much better probability of remaining out of the judicial system after rehab.