Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered as being a considerably better option than prison time or significant fines for those who have been convicted of any kind of alcohol or drug related crime. For example, someone who has been in prison for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may qualify to receive rehab services for their problem as an alternative to serving time in jail. The judge might even order that the individual receive treatment, either alone or along with other sentencing. First-time offenders in particular are often given the opportunity choose a criminal justice client rehab as opposed to other sentencing, and it is well-advised that they make the most of it if it's an alternative. The idea behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is much more effective and efficient to invest time and energy into rehab than punishment. Much research has been done to observe how effective this approach is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the individual returns or not to criminal justice system following rehabilitation. All indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients who do take part in treatment have better probability of remaining out of the judicial system following rehabilitation.