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Testing the Cost Savings of Judicial Diversion: Final Report

“In April 2009, New York State passed Rockefeller Drug Law Reform. The law eliminated mandatory prison sentences for most felony drug offenders. In addition, through a procedure defined as judicial diversion, the law provided judges with discretion to link an expanded array of felony-level drug and property offenders to treatment, primarily through specialized drug courts” (p. 1). This study determined the impact of judicial diversion on drug treatment participation and related cost savings. Four chapters follow an executive summary: introduction-a brief history of the Rockefeller Drug Law Reform, and drug courts and other court-ordered treatment options in New York; impact on treatment enrollment; impact on sentencing outcomes; and impact on costs and savings. Court-ordered treatment enrollment increased by 77% with a cost savings of $5,564 per diverted offender.