Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered being a considerably better option than prison time or significant fines for individuals who have already been convicted of any type of alcohol or drug related crime. As an example, a person who has been found guilty of driving drunk of drugs or alcohol may qualify to get treatment services because of their problem as an alternative to serving time in prison. The judge may even order that the individual receive rehabilitation, either alone or as well as other sentencing. First time offenders in particular will often be given the opportunity pick a criminal justice client rehab as an alternative to other sentencing, and it is highly recommended that they take advantage of it when it is an alternative. The theory behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is much more efficient and effective to invest effort and time into treatment than punishment. Much research has been completed to observe how effective this process is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the criminal justice client returns or not to criminal justice system following treatment. All indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients who do experience rehab have better probability of remaining out of the system following rehab.