The effects of a jail diversion program on incarceration: A retrospective cohort study

The objective of this retrospective cohort study was to determine whether a jail diversion program significantly reduced the number of days of incarce ration over the year following arrest in a sample of seriously mentally ill (SMI) people who had been arrested for a minor crime. Methods: A group of 314 SMI detainees were diverted out of jail and into mental health treatmen t. They were compared with a sample of 124 people who would have been eligi ble for diversion but were not diverted. For each group, the authors compar ed the total days incarcerated in the year after index arrest. Analyses ind icated that jail diversion significantly reduced incarceration time during the next year (40.51 versus 172.84 days, p = .0001). However, the effect of diversion differed depending upon the level of criminal charge: diversion significantly reduced jail time only among those who were arrested for more serious offenses. Those arrested for Class D felony and Class A misdemeano r charges and diverted into mental health treatment spent significantly les s time in jail in the next year than those not diverted (260 and 110 fewer days, respectively; p = .0001 for both). Those arrested for Class a or C mi sdemeanors had similar days incarcerated regardless of diversion. These res ults remained after adjusting for age, race, gender, and diagnosis. This st udy presents the first evidence that jail diversion may produce positive lo ngitudinal criminal justice outcomes for SMI people. It also suggests that diversion may not reduce incarceration in all sub-groups of SMI people who are arrested far minor crimes.