Noblesville man now more than 700 days sober . . .
Jason Shadoan has a lot to be grateful for. With a solid job and his first baby on the way, things are looking up for this 30-year old Noblesville man, but that wasn’t always the case.
“I should have been in prison, or worse, dead,” Shadoan admits. “My life today is unrecognizable from where it was two years ago.”
Shadoan started drinking and using drugs at the age of 13. His heroin addiction caught up to him after multiple arrests for theft and possession of drugs, but Hamilton County Superior Court 6 Judge Gail Bardach saw something in Shadoan. She admitted him into the Hamilton County Drug Court in July 2016. Monday, May 7, Shadoan graduated 733 days sober.
“Jason used to turn to drugs to dull his anger and frustrations,” Bardach recalls. “Now he mentors other drug court attendees and even started a Heroin Anonymous chapter.”
May is National Drug Court Month. Shadoan is the 54th participant to graduate from Hamilton County’s Drug Court since its founding in 2010. The ceremony marks the completion of an intensive 18-24 months of comprehensive substance use disorder treatment, close supervision and accountability.
“Jason’s graduation is evidence of the tremendous impact Drug Court has had on our community,” Judge Bardach says. “It sends a powerful message. These programs reduce addiction, crime and recidivism while saving lives, families and valuable resources for our state.”
This year, treatment courts throughout the nation are advocating to ensure continued federal and state funding. There are more than 3,000 treatment courts in the United States annually serving 150,000 people.
“I want to be sober so I can be present in my life,” Shadoan says. “For the first time in a long time, I can say, ‘My life is good!’”
To learn more about Hamilton County’s Drug Court, click here.