Criminal justice client rehabs are available as a significantly better option than time in jail or significant fines for many who have already been convicted of any sort of drug or alcohol related crime. As an example, somebody who has been found guilty of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol may qualify to get treatment services because of their problem as an alternative to serving time in prison. The judge might even order the individual receive rehab, either alone or in addition to other consequences. First time offenders in particular will often be given the opportunity to go with a criminal justice client rehab rather than other sentencing, and it is well-advised that they take advantage of it if it is an option. The idea behind criminal justice client rehabs is it is far more efficient and effective to invest time and effort into rehabilitation than punishment. Much research has been done to discover 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 quite positive, and criminal justice clients that do take part in treatment have a better probability of remaining out of the judicial system following rehab.