Things 30 days in jail can’t fix: Poverty, homelessless, addiction, abuse.
Something that might help: LEAD—Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion—a national effort that matches low-level offenders with services to help turn their lives around.
Monday, about three dozen local and state law enforcement officials turned out for a signing in Schoharie to formally kick off Schoharie County’s participation in LEAD, making it the first rural program of its kind in the country.
“Tomorrow, we start diverting people,” said Sheriff’s Investigator Bruce Baker, who spearheaded what became a two-year effort to bring LEAD here.
Investigator Baker said initial thoughts were that by partnering with Catholic Charities, LEAD could work with as many as 10 non-violent offenders, matching them with agencies like Social Services, Mental Health, and Legal Defense in its first year.
Though that figure depends on the workload of the LEAD caseworker, Monday, he upped it to possibly as many as 20.
“But really? It will benefit everyone in Schoharie County. Not just the offenders and their families, but all of us,” he said.
That’s because the end goal of what Investigator Baker called a “left turn in law enforcement” when he presented the idea to supervisors in August, is fewer repeat offenders and less crime.
Retired Albany Police Chief Brendan Cox, who now works for the LEAD National Support Bureau, praised Sheriff Ron Stevens and local law enforcement for embracing the idea with an open mind.
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re big or small,” he said. “The problems are the same and there are better ways to address them than through the criminal justice system.
“By not arresting people, we can create a safer public. In Albany, we’ve saw a real transformation.”
Already, five deputies have been trained in LEAD.
Keith Brown, who handled the training through the KATAL Center, said he saw what he always does during the training: Resistance quickly giving way engagement.
“They’re frustrated,” he said. “Our criminal system isn’t equipped to deal with the problems we’re seeing. Arrest and incarceration don’t address the real issues and that’s really the only tool law enforcement has.
“But we can’t arrest our way out of this.”
Congressman Antonio Delgado pledged his support to the effort, calling it “incredibly powerful and meaningful work” and a way to “help people trapped in ways that are unfair.”
“I’m very proud to be representing a place like this.”
Quoting Henry Ford that “Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success,” Sheriff Stevens said he’s confident LEAD will succeed.
In part, Investigator Baker said to laughter, “because when we first started looking into it, we realized it was crazy enough to work.”
“The good thing about being in a small community is that everyone knows everyone and what they can bring to the table,” he said.
“This program is fighting for the cure.”