Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered as being a significantly better option than prison time or significant fines for many who have already been convicted of any sort of alcohol or drug related crime. For example, a person who has been found guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may be eligible for treatment services for their problem instead of serving time in prison. The judge could even order the individual receive rehabilitation, either alone or along with other consequences. First-time offenders specifically are often given the ability to pick a criminal justice client rehab as an alternative to other sentencing, and it is highly recommended that they take advantage of it if it is an alternative. The theory behind criminal justice client rehabs is that it is way more effective and efficient to invest effort and time into treatment than punishment. Much research has been carried out to see how effective this strategy is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the criminal justice client returns or not to criminal justice system following treatment. The signs and indicators seem quite positive, and criminal justice clients who do experience rehabilitation have better possibility of remaining out of the system after rehab.