Diversion Programs

Through pretrial diversion programs, courts can more effectively address the underlying problems that contribute to criminal behavior, and reduce the likelihood of future crime. In pretrial diversion programs, defendants with a specific problem such as drug addiction or mental illness are handled by a special court that has resources and trained staff to address these issues. In some instances, cases are diverted at the outset of the case, in lieu of prosecution. The charges can be dropped or reduced when the defendant successfully completes diversion supervision. Diverting cases from traditional prosecution has the added benefit of reducing criminal court caseloads.

This section contains the specific chapters of each set of standards related to this topic, documents submitted by programs as examples, related publications and results from the NAPSA Survey of Diversion Programs.