Research Report: Evaluating the Early Public Safety Impact on Davis County Jail Diversion Program 2021

Overview:

Introduced in December of 2019, the Davis County jail diversion program aims to provide an alternative to traditional arrest or citation for adults who have engaged in certain lower-level drug crimes and misdemeanor offenses. Instead of traditional paths, the program allows referral to appropriate treatment services to avoid the stigmatizing and often costly criminal justice track.

Research Question:

Critics of jail diversion programs argue that public safety will be compromised as individuals offered treatment in the community now have the opportunity to commit similar and even more severe crimes. As such, we pose the question if there is evidence that the Davis County jail diversion program has had an adverse effect on public safety.

Method:

A simple difference-in-differences approach is used to account for general time trends and estimate the treatment effect for those who could refer to the program (the treatment group), compared with those for whom referral opportunities were not yet available (the control group). Conclusion: We find no evidence that the Davis County jail diversion program, which serves as an alternative to the traditional criminal justice path, has a negative impact on public safety, when public safety is defined as either increases in the volume of bookings, drug-related bookings, or the number of charges associated with these bookings after program roll-out. Preliminary cost analysis suggests that the program is effective in reducing bookings within the county.

Recommendations:

Extend the study period and analyze outcomes of those who participated in the program. These outcomes may be associated with re-arrest rates and treatment engagement. The established and strong link between substance use disorders and low-level property offenses, including theft, warrants a closer look at the current inclusion criteria to see if additional offense types could be eligible for the program, which has the potential to capture a larger share of those in need of substance use services.

Read the full research brief below: