That’s right – judges may no longer legally send you, or anyone else, to AA. Unhappily, a lot of judges, along with lawyers, haven’t gotten the message, or even more commonly, judges continue to order people to AA unless you object.

Please note, all of these courts have ruled that Alcoholics Anonymous is a religion or engages in religious activities:

  • the Federal 7th Circuit Court in Wisconsin, 1984;
  • the Federal District Court for Southern New York, 1994;
  • the New York Court of Appeals, 1996;
  • the New York State Supreme Court, 1996;
  • the U.S. Supreme Court, 1997;
  • the Tennessee State Supreme Court;
  • the Federal 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, 1996;
  • the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit;
  • the U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh District, 1996;
  • the Federal Appeals Court in Chicago, 1996;
  • the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, September 7, 2007.

The United States Supreme Court has refused to hear challenges to those rulings, or to change or over-turn those lower court decisions. By letting them stand, the Supreme Court has made them the law of the land.

There is no greater abuse of individuals by the courts these days than the continued orders to attend AA, AA /12 Step based treatment, or other coercive mandates to equally ineffective, and frequently counter-productive, forms of so-called treatment.

“No, Judge. No AA!”

Yes, you and your attorney may have to be emphatic – NO AA! You may have to offer alternatives to AA, and you may have to dig a little to find them, but we do exist.

What constitutes an AA alternative? Counseling and/or treatment based on research regarding what actually works including:

  • CBT;
  • Motivational Interviewing;
  • Naltrexone;
  • Fitness;
  • Couples Counseling;
  • Adult Development;
  • Assertiveness Training

Remember too, it’s not just judges who sentence people to AA but also the licensing and certification boards that send “impaired professionals” to AA and 12 Step based treatment – a practice so fraught with graft and corruption that many states have eliminated the programs altogether.

Again – you cannot legally be required to join the AA cult!

Why do these abuses of power continue to appear?

Certainly ignorance of the law contributes, though judges are supposed to know what they can and can’t do. More often it’s the assumption that defendants and their lawyers won’t know their rights or will be too overwhelmed to object. Too often this assumption proves to be right and another poor sucker gets sent off.

But that doesn’t have to be you! You can “just say no” to AA and to the abusive and exploitive programs it has created – programs that actually prevent you from fixing your problems.

Worried about what lies ahead? Give us a call and discuss your particular situation and how we can help divert you away from AA and into a program that actually works at a fraction of the cost.

Don’t allow yourself to be punished repeatedly!

Just remember, “No, Judge. No AA!”