Juvenile diversion program to expand

Cheyenne County is expanding a juvenile diversion program that offers alternatives to the formal justice system for minors alleged to have committed offenses.

Paul Schaub, Cheyenne County Attorney, said in the past, diversion has been offered on a case-by-case basis. A $30,000 state grant, awarded in May, will now allow the county to hire a full time coordinator to create a systematic juvenile diversion program.

"Any eligible person for the program is going to be presented with the same set of guidelines as everyone else," he said. "This type of program with these types of guidelines have to be in place for the funding, and it's a result of the funding we are able to hire a diversion coordinator."

The program's goals are to assist youth who are in need of intervention and treatment to receive the services that will help reduce the likelihood of future offenses and reduce costs, while improving the efficiency of the court system, according to a report Schaub presented to county commissioners earlier this week.

The degree of intervention will be matched with the severity of the offense, and diversion could include community service, victim-offender mediation, counseling and mentoring.

"It's going to save on costs, it's going to save on resources and it's going to help pinpoint the needs without the formality of court," Schaub explained.

To be eligible for the program, youth must be 18 years old or younger – though the County Attorney's Office will have discretion to make it available to someone older than 18 who is charged with a minor in possession of alcohol offense.

Additionally, participants must have no criminal history or juvenile court record.

"Sexual abuse or physical abuse related offenses are only available for diversion upon the discretion of the County Attorney's Office," the report adds.

The program is not mandatory, and even if a youth begins diversion, they can withdraw at any time prior to completion and return to the court process "without prejudice to them during the ordinary course of prosecution."

In addition to making use of services and treatments available in the Panhandle region, Schaub said, his office is working with schools to ensure programs aren't duplicated.

Throughout the diversion process, youth offenders will also have the opportunity to interact with responsible adults.

"The program is going to promote some interaction between the juvenile and a responsible adult – the coordinator and community service provider and other persons," Schuab said. "We hope that some additional positive influence in the child's life is going to help as well."

The position for the diversion program coordinator has been advertised and interviews will be conducted next week, he said.

"If we can save some of [the court] costs and move some of those into promoting programs or community service or victim-offender mediation, those types of programs, we're going to have a better chance of correcting the problem instead of introducing a child to into the court system, which may actually be detrimental," Schaub said.