DUI Court is not an easy program. Participants make a contract with the judge to abide by stringent requirements. They must wear an ankle bracelet that detects alcohol consumption and attend alcohol-recovery meetings. Probationers report compliance with their probation contracts to the court. Failure to comply may result in additional jail time.

Graduation is the reward for success. Graduation or failure is judged on the facts of each individual case by judges who have taken an oath of office to uphold the Constitution and decide matters fairly and impartially without regard to race, color or national origin.

A crucial component of the program includes regular probation meetings held in open court with the defendant, judge, probation officer, defense counsel and prosecutor. This team unites to convince a participant of the grave consequences of drinking and driving and to reinforce alcohol recovery. To be effective, there must be open, candid and meaningful communication between each probationer and the treatment team.

From 1998 to 2002, all court meetings were conducted in English. Although from the beginning, participants benefited from the program, team members observed that probationers who could not communicate easily in English did not benefit as much from treatment.

Spanish language DUI Court was established in 2002 to effectively communicate with probationers whose primary language is Spanish. Each probationer, not the judge, chooses whether to participate in the Spanish-speaking program. Although the group session is conducted in Spanish, real-time English-language interpretation is provided for everyone who requests it.

Because team members also observed a barrier to effectiveness with Native Americans, the court established another purely voluntary program option for Native American probationers. Although these court meetings are conducted in English, this program offers specialized probation services proven to successfully promote alcohol recovery for Native Americans.

The programs work. Most participants remain clean and sober. Almost 66 percent of the DUI participants and 88 percent of the Spanish-language participants succeed.

This is a life-or-death public safety issue. Discussion should focus on saving lives, making our roads safer and protecting our children and neighbors from death by alcohol.

The writer is presiding judge of Maricopa County Superior Court.