New Mexico treatment court program manager and advocate receives national honor

Administrative Office of the Courts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SANTA FE – A New Mexico judicial program manager today received a national honor for his leadership and dedication to treatment courts and support for individuals recovering from substance use and mental health issues.

 

Carlos Gonzales, a statewide program manager with the Therapeutic Justice Support Program in the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), was inducted into the Stanley Goldstein Treatment Court Hall of Fame at the Rise26 national conference in Nashville. He is the first treatment court graduate to receive this honor from All Rise, formerly known as the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.

 

Gonzales joined the AOC in 2021, and manages alumni and peer initiatives for treatment court programs as well as support to the treatment court teams in New Mexico. He graduated from the First Judicial District Court Adult Drug Court in 2001, and has served as an alumni leader and mentor for two decades. He is a certified peer support worker and licensed adult drug and alcohol counselor.

 

“I greatly appreciate this recognition from my peers and colleagues, but the honor also belongs to the dedicated professionals and alumni who ensure New Mexico’s treatment court programs provide a path for recovery for people across the state,” said Gonzales.

 

As part of his judicial work, Gonzales established in 2023 the first alumni summit for New Mexico’s treatment court graduates — the first event of its kind nationwide. There are now 33 alumni groups within the state’s 58 treatment court programs. Gonzales is a founding member and chairperson of the National Treatment Court Alumni Association (NTCAA). New Mexico’s process for starting alumni groups for treatment court programs served as a model for a national toolkit developed by All Rise and NTCAA.

 

“Countless people have benefited from Carlos’ leadership and advocacy for integrating peer support into treatment court programs in New Mexico and other states,” said AOC Director Karl Reifsteck.

 

Treatment courts in New Mexico include adult and juvenile drug courts as well as DWI, mental health, veterans, domestic violence, and healing-to-wellness treatment courts. These programs offer an alternative to incarceration. A multidisciplinary team oversees the programs, which provide treatment to individuals arrested for certain offenses and hold them accountable through frequent substance use testing, supervisory support visits and judicial hearings.