Beltrami County Drug Court Holds First Graduation Ceremony

The Beltrami County Drug Court held a ceremony Wednesday to celebrate the first graduation of a participant from the treatment and team-based program.

Established in January of 2020, the drug court’s mission of helping offenders with drug-related crimes was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, members of the court came together to help those affected by drug use.

At the Beltrami County Courthouse, a hearing was held at the ceremony before the participant was presented with her certificate and some mementos to commemorate the progress made during the program, which usually takes an average of 15 months and five separate phases to complete.

The months of hard work paid off for the participant, as those who run the drug court presented her with purple frosted cupcakes, the color of which represented the program’s final step: graduation.

Drug court representatives say that they anticipate two or three more participants will graduate this year, with hopes that in the coming years, more people can benefit from this program and community.