AUGUSTA, Maine — It costs Maine $42,000 a year to house a prison inmate. But for some people who have committed non-violent drug-related offenses, there's a sentencing alternative that costs just $26,000.
But it's more than dollars and cents for those who work in the criminal justice system in the state.
"It's actually a really exciting time to be apart of the criminal justice system," Kennebec and Somerset County District Attorney, Maeghan Maloney said.
She told NEWS CENTER Maine these programs are about helping people get clean and become part of our community.
"Using only that (jail or prison) we're not doing anything that actually makes our community safer because prison alone isn't going to rehabilitate somebody," Maloney said.
She says the people that graduate from this 17-month program, they are more than just members of their community.
"What we're graduating is not just people who don't commit crimes anymore. The people that we're graduating are becoming the superheroes of our community," she said. "These are the people who are willing to go above and beyond."
One of those people is Tony Pushard.
Pushard was in and out of foster care for a lot of his life and when he got out of the foster care system at 18, he got an OUI and was arrested.
"So I'm just out of control I'm just out there in the world I'm violent," Pushard said describing his childhood.
That began years of him being in and out of jail.
"Which landed me in prison twice and in and out of county jails I can't even tell you how many times I've probably been in every county jail in this state and that's not an exaggeration," he said.
But finally, Pushard was sentenced to a drug court program, that saved his life.
Now, sober for more than six years, Pushard has been able to be around to watch his son grow up and to live a life he's proud of. He is also working as a counselor to help other recovering addicts and working on finishing his bachelor's degree.