In its first year of existence, officials estimated the misdemeanor marijuana diversion program run by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office saved the county about $17 million and allowed it to better allocate resources.
The program—which Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg began March 1, 2017—offers individuals caught with less than 4 ounces of marijuana the opportunity to take a four-hour diversion class in place of being charged and arrested for the crime.
Individuals choosing to take the course must pay a $150 fine and attend a class—which is held multiple times a week—within 90 days, said Nathan Beedle, chief of the DA’s misdemeanor division.
In its first full year of existence, the program was offered and accepted by an individual caught with marijuana in 4,118 cases. Meanwhile, between March 1, 2017, and Feb. 28, 2018, 2,057 misdemeanor marijuana cases filed by the DA’s office were not eligible for the program, said Elizabeth Eakin, the DA’s director of special projects.
“If you try to bring marijuana into a Harris County jail or correctional facility, if you have marijuana in a school zone … if you are on bond for a felony or on probation for a felony, you are not eligible [for the program],” Beedle said.
Of the 4,118 cases, fewer than 1,000 people missed the deadline and were issued arrest warrants, she said.
Ogg intended for the program to allow the county to begin focusing more on crimes related to people and property, Beedle said. For example, the number of aggravated assault cases the DA’s office filed last year increased from 3,005 in 2016 to 4,025 in 2017, while the number of robbery cases filed increased from 1,859 in 2016 to 1,936 in 2017, according to data provided by the DA’s office.
Although it is hard to measure how much the county has saved because the program affects every level of law enforcement, Eakin said she estimates the savings are about $17.25 million. This estimate includes the amount of money saved at the DA’s office and well as money saved within police departments, at the jails, courts, crime labs and on indigent defense.
HCSO District 1 Capt. Jay Coons said the program saves deputies time because they no longer have to take individuals caught with misdemeanor-level quantities of marijuana into custody, transport them to jail and book them, which usually takes about one or two hours. However, Coons said there are other crimes that come with drug use that make it harder to determine the program’s effects.
“If you engage in [crime] and you expose yourself to different segments of society, you can increase your risk of [becoming a victim of a crime],” he said.