Fighting Drug Addiction (Joe's story)

Joe was a heroin addict who regularly stole from shops to fund his drug habit. He was in a ‘revolving door' of repeat offending. He would receive a prison sentence and then on release - would re-offend again. He lost his courier business and his home. He returned to live with his family.

The turning point for Joe was when he overdosed on heroin and his mother found him in his bedroom. The strange noise she had heard was her son choking. He was rushed to hospital and was stabilised. Instead of a further prison sentence, Joe was placed on a Drug Rehabilitation Requirement that involved supervision, support and drugs testing.

The intensive package enabled Joe to make progress and he gradually reduced his intake of methadone. He has moved from a hostel and now has a one-bedroom flat. His re-offending stopped and as part of his rehabilitation work, Joe went back to a shop that he had previously stolen from and apologised to the shop owner. He also prepared a security plan for the owner to show him where he could make improvements to reduce the opportunities for shoplifters.

* names have been changed.