Criminal justice client rehabs are available being a considerably better option than prison time or heavy fines for those who have been convicted of any sort of alcohol or drug related crime. By way of example, anyone who has been in prison for driving while impaired of alcohol or drugs may qualify to obtain rehab services for his or her problem as an alternative to serving time in jail. The judge might order that the individual receive rehab, either alone or along with other sentencing. First time offenders in particular tend to be given the ability to choose a criminal justice client rehab instead of other sentencing, and it is highly recommended they make the most of it if it's an option. The concept behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is much more effective and efficient to invest commitment into rehabilitation than punishment. Much research has been done to find out how effective this approach is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the individual returns or not to criminal justice system following treatment. The signs and indicators seem to be quite positive, and criminal justice clients that do take part in rehab have better potential for remaining out of the system after rehabilitation.