Page 10 - Delaware Lawyer - Spring 2022

FEATURE | EQUITABLE JUSTICE FOR ALL
us all less safe by destroying trust in communities. I ran for office to offer a more effective and just alterna- tive. We know the old system hasn’t worked to bring accountability, protect victims, and provide indi- viduals with the tools necessar y to live better lives. So, we in Fairfax have set out to make our community safer and our justice system more eq- uitable by holding those responsible for the most serious crimes account- able criminally and diverting those who commit less harmful crimes when alternatives to incarceration are more likely to successfully produce accountability. In doing so, our aim is to move beyond the culture of reflexively churning out convictions like the one that separated Mr. Wilson from his family and community.
In service of this goal, I brought structure to an office that had none by creating specialty teams that are
hyper-focused on how to deal with specific categories of crime. For the first time in our community’s histo- ry, for instance, we launched a unit dedicated to prosecuting sex crimes and crimes against children — which requires a unique expertise inside and outside of the courtroom. In parallel, new programs like our Taking Root diversion program evaluate individu- als for whom community ser vices would be a more effective tool for accountability than incarceration and connect them to those ser vices. This needs-based intervention diverts those individuals away from incar- ceration to treatment that will help them address the root causes of their actions. Such an approach allows us to focus our courtroom resources on the most harmful crimes — like the ones handled by our aforemen- tioned unit that deals with sex crimes and crimes against children — while
relying on more equitable, just and effective interventions in less seri- ous offenses. Taken together, this twin approach makes for a safer community and more just system.
For proof, look no further than the data. Research has demon- strated that diversion can promote safety and reduce recidivism, while mitigating racial and socioeconomic disparities. A recent study concluded that diversion “decreased a person’s future convictions” by 48% over a 10-year period and improved their employment potential by 53% for the same time period.3 Additionally, participants in youth diversion pro- grams were found to be 2.44 times less likely to be rearrested than those adjudicated in court.4 These out- comes aren’t surprising when you consider that the people who filter through our courthouse were our neighbors before being charged with a crime and they’ll be our neigh- bors when their involvement in the justice system runs its course. We are all safer when we provide them with the tools to move beyond harm- ful behavior. Relying exclusively on incarceration and a mindlessly puni- tive approach to prosecution does not lead to safety. Programs like Taking Root are necessary components of building a more just system that also improves safety.
Prosecutors are the actors in the justice system with the most discretion. We are the ultimate arbiters of how a case gets charged. To drive reform, we must therefore reserve our lim- ited prosecutorial resources for the most harmful crimes by diverting community members when doing so is more likely to produce a safe and just outcome for the communi- ty. Only then can we deliver a more equitable and effective legal system for the communities we represent.
8 DELAWARE LAWYER SPRING 2022