Criminal justice client rehabs are available as being a far better option than prison time or significant fines for those who have already been convicted of any kind of drug or alcohol related crime. For example, somebody who has been in prison for driving drunk of alcohol or drugs may qualify to get rehab services because of their problem rather than serving time in prison. The judge might even order that the individual receive rehabilitation, either alone or together with other sentencing. First time offenders in particular in many cases are given the chance to pick a criminal justice client rehab instead of other sentencing, and it is highly recommended they make the most of it when it is a choice. The idea behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is way more effective and efficient to invest time and energy into treatment than punishment. Much research has been carried out to observe how effective this strategy is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the criminal justice client returns or not to criminal justice system following rehabilitation. All indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients that experience rehab have a much better possibility of remaining out of the system following rehab.