Otter Tail County’s DWI court is off and running

By Susan Larson | The Daily Journal

Published Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Hallie Metcalf

With one client and two employees, Otter Tail County’s DWI court is off and running.

Tria Mann has been hired as DWI court coordinator, and Hallie Metcalf as surveillance officer. Both are half-time positions. The program took its first client March 7. A DWI court probation officer will be hired soon, Otter Tail County Probation Director Chuck Kitzman said.

The purpose of DWI court is to lessen damage caused by chemically-impaired drivers. It is funded by a $65,575 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration grant. The county has budgeted $56,526 in its preliminary budget as the local contribution. Typical clients are those who have repeatedly been through traditional rehabilitation unsuccessfully.

Tria Mann

To participate, offenders must be diagnosed with a substance dependence; have a felony DWI not carrying a commitment to prison; three DWIs in the past 15 years; second degree DWI; 18 or older; a high recidivism risk. Violent offenders — those who have committed serious crimes against people, such as terroristic threats, sexual assault, aggravated robbery, are disqualified from the program, Kitzman said.

A highly structured program, participants live within tight restrictions. Keeping close tabs on them will be a vital part of their success. That is the responsibility of Metcalf. She enforces curfews (during phase one, participants have a 9 p.m. curfew) and performs drug tests. Her job includes making random visits to participants’’ home and places of employment at all hours, usually late evening.

While the hours might be non-conventional, it allows Metcalf to be at home with her family, which includes husband, Tony and their children Grace, 7; Katelyn, 4 and a half; Ella, 3; and Joseph, 6 months.

The job’s element of the unexpected also appeals to Metcalf.

“Each day is different,” she said.

Mann’s job requires less actual contact with the participants.

“My main job is to coordinate the grant,” she said. “I track data for evaluation of the program, oversee the financial aspect of it and coordinate the program.”

Mann has a degree from North Dakota State University in parks, recreation and natural resources, with emphasis on therapeutic recreation. She sees similarities between her new position and her previous job with parks and recreation in Eden Prairie.

“I’ve coordinated many programs in park and recreation,” Mann said. “This position calls for teamwork and working with government agencies and the community,” Mann said.

Accountability is one of the program’s biggest strengths, she said.

“The idea of DWI court was intriguing because it’s another aspect of helping someone become sober and keep our community safe,” Mann said. “What I like about the program is the accountability it has for people. They need to be accountable for their lives and to the community.”

A Wendell native, Mann and her husband, Tom Mann, reside in Fergus Falls with their children, Tosten, 10; and Lydia, 8.

Recommendation for the program can come from the prosecutor or defense attorney in a particular case. The final decision is that of the DWI Court team. Thus far, only five have been nominated. One is already participating.

“He’s getting a lot of our attention right now,” Kitzman said, indicating the individual had recently been visited by Metcalf three nights in a row. “By fall we hope to have 15 or 20 people in the program.”

Another individual has just been accepted to the program. One has been rejected and two are pending.