Kane county state's attorney's pre-arrest diversion initiative - having identified a need to address and respond to the ongoing opioid crisis that claimed 69 lives in kane county in 2020, and the…

Kane county state's attorney's pre-arrest diversion initiative - having identified a need to address and respond to the ongoing opioid crisis that claimed 69 lives in kane county in 2020, and the over-burdening of the criminal legal system with people who have low-level drug offenses and offenses related to untreated mental health issues or a lack of resources, the kane county state's attorney began establishing a pre-arrest diversion initiative based on the law enforcement assisted diversion (lead) model. A pilot was started in collaboration with the elgin police department, starting in november or 2021. In january of 2022, the kane county sheriff's office adopted the initiative, followed soon after by the metra police, the carpentersville police department, and then the pingree grove police department. Aurora, sugar grove, and south elgin are in the early stages of exploring implementation, with a goal of rolling out with all law enforcement agencies in kane county as resources allow. Evidence has shown repeatedly and consistently that people experiencing mental health issues and/or substance use disorders are better treated through the agencies and services within the community than in the criminal legal system. While many resources exist to provide support and services to people in need, many individuals struggle to connect with them, and they often operate in silos. This initiative pairs participants with a case manager who works to establish a trusting relationship, to refer them to support and services that the participant themselves identifies, and to work through a lens of harm reduction, motivational interviewing, and stages of change theory to allow the participant to lead their own path to improvement and decreased interaction with law enforcement. Referrals to the kane county pre-arrest diversion initiative are made either as arrest referrals, where an officer makes the decision to not arrest in any case where they understand the root cause of the low level, nonviolent alleged offense to be untreated mental health, substance use, or a lack of resources, and makes the offer of participation in pre-arrest diversion as an alternative; or as a social contact referral of an individual who is not currently in a potential arrest situation, but who is known to have frequent interaction with law enforcement for any of these reasons. To ensure participants do not fall through the cracks between the different partners they engage with, partners meet twice a month to review any significant changes or updates with cases. These operational workgroup meetings include the public defender's office, the state's attorney's office, law enforcement partners, case managers, pre-arrest diversion leadership, and any service agency who has a concern or update they'd like to bring up with the partners. A policy coordinating group (PCG), comprised of elected officials and agency directors, meet quarterly to review, update, and/or create policies that guide the direction of the initiative. And a community leadership team (CLT) serves as a bridge between the initiative and the community, representing an array of lived experience and demographic diversity. The CLT meets monthly in order to keep the initiative abreast of concerns in the community, and to get updates on the initiative to bring back to the community. As the initiative continues to expand, the funding through this project will provide the resources necessary to hire additional case managers and set up a space within existing county property to house the pre-arrest diversion staff.