Diversion and Deferral
This section presents data on cases granted diversion or deferred judgment. Diversion and deferred judgments are alternatives to traditional prosecution that attempt to address individuals’ needs and prevent re-offense while still holding people accountable. If programmatic requirements are met, the case will be dismissed.
Why is this important? Understanding what cases are diverted or deferred and the rate of successful program completion provides information on whether the alternative minimizes unnecessary punitiveness and maintains community safety.
Changes in law, local practices, and COVID have resulted in a decrease in Diversion cases in recent years. Case involving minors in possession of alcohol or marijuana historically were filed with the DA's Office and were regularly diverted, but recently these cases are being filed more frequently into municipal courts. Additionally, drug felonies, prior to the drug reclassification in 2020, were regularly diverted. Since the reclassification of these offenses to misdemeanors, the DA's Office does not receive as many of these cases, which we would have expected to divert. Further, since COVID, the DA's Office has seen an increase in the number of cases per defendant, along with an increase in failures to appear, which has resulted in fewer Diversion referrals. The DA's Office will be evaluating the referral process for Diversion to ensure appropriate cases are being referred for Diversion.
Our aim is to always ensure diversion is equally accessible. These percentages must also be considered in light of the proportion of all cases by race brought into the DA's Office.
Indicators
Below are a set of indicators that provide additional context about diversion and deferrals. These indicators help the DA's Office ensure they are providing alternatives to traditional prosecution effectively and fairly.
Our aim is to achieve racial/ethnic equity in plea outcomes to ensure that cases receive fair treatment. However, factors such as type of charge, number of charges, number of active cases per defendant, and criminal history impact plea outcomes for every defendant. See our disparity analysis for a more detailed look at differences by race/ethnicity while taking into account potential differences in defendant and case characteristics.
Our aim is to achieve racial/ethnic equity in plea outcomes to ensure that cases receive fair treatment. However, factors such as type of charge, number of charges, number of active cases per defendant, and criminal history impact plea outcomes for every defendant. See our disparity analysis for a more detailed look at differences by race/ethnicity while taking into account potential differences in defendant and case characteristics.
Click Here for more information about race and ethnicity data collection and limitations.
The shaded areas reflect percentages, but hovering over by quarter provides raw numbers.
Criminal history and recidivism measures are limited in that they are calculated based on cases filed within the eight District Attorneys’ offices participating in the Colorado Prosecutorial Dashboards Project (the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 18th, and 20th). We do not have information on cases filed outside these jurisdictions nor do the measures reflect cases from Colorado municipal courts or cases from outside the state of Colorado. Criminal history relies on data since 2007. For these reasons, criminal history and recidivism may be underestimated.
Notes:
- Underlying data counts for each chart can be accessed through this link.