New program will allow treatment instead of arrests for low-level offenses in New Orleans
By Marie Simoneaux
mariesimoneaux@nola.com,
NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
Officials in the New Orleans Police Department’s 8th District are working with the city’s Health Department to connect low-level, non-violent offenders with social services as an alternative to incarceration.
The district began piloting on Wednesday (Nov. 29) a new pre-booking deflection program called LEAD, or Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion. The Vera Institute of Justice is a national social justice group that worked with the health department, the police department and the Criminal Justice Council to develop the program over the past two and a half years.
The Vera Institute successfully implemented similar programs in Seattle, Washington and Albany, New York, according to Corinna Yazbek, senior associate of strategic partners for the group. LEAD is funded by grants from the McArthur Safety and Justice Challenge and the United States Department of Justice.
To read the rest of the program details, click here.
