NCJ Number
205391
Journal
Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 43 Issue: 2 Dated: May 2004 Pages: 131-148
Date Published
May 2004
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This article presents the results of an evaluation of two post-charge criminal court diversion pilot projects in Toronto, Canada.
Abstract
Canadian criminal justice has undergone the same types of transformations that the United States criminal justice system has experienced. Increasingly, minor offenders are being diverted away from the criminal courts toward a range of community sanctions. In May 1998, Canadian officials undertook two pilot projects that diverted minor offenders to community sanctions: provincial diversion, designed for all qualifying minor offenders and Federal diversion, designed for first-time cannabis offenders. In the case of provincial diversion, all charges are dropped after successful completion of the program; in the case of Federal diversion, charges are dropped 1 year following successful completion of the program. The current evaluation took place after both diversion projects had been in operation for 15 months. Data included a file review of both diversion projects and a 6-month follow-up on project participants. Interviews were conducted with Crown prosecutors, defense counsel, community agency representatives, and diversion participants from both projects. There were 670 participants in the provincial diversion project and 664 participants in the Federal diversion project during the evaluation period between May 1998 and December 1999. Two-thirds of the provincial participants made a donation to a charitable organization, while 7 percent made restitution to the victim and 22 percent provided community service to a religious or ethnocultural organization. Overall, 94 percent of the provincial participants completed the project and 91 percent of the Federal participants completed the project. Arrests during the 6-month follow-up were rare: 4 percent of provincial and 5 percent of Federal participants were re-arrested during the 6 months following completion of the project. Of the Federal group, 96 percent performed community service, while 3 percent made a charitable donation. Both the file review data and the interview data revealed the success of the diversion projects. The screening criterion captured the correct target offenders and the range of community sanctions undertaken was varied. Future research should focus on utilizing qualitative data to understand how to implement criminal justice reforms that require a significant philosophical shift in how society approaches criminality. Tables, notes, references