Testing the Cost Savings of the New York Judicial Diversion Program

Status: complete


Project Description: NPC Research and the Center for Court Innovation (CCI) analyzed the costs and savings of 10 Judicial Diversion drug court programs located throughout the state of New York (two New York City, two suburban, two upstate urban, and four upstate rural counties).

Research Questions: Research questions included:

  • How many more charge-eligible offenders entered drug courts or other court-mandated treatment initiatives in New York State in the year after Judicial Diversion was implemented as compared with the preceding year?
  • How do sentences differ between offenders who entered drug court under Judicial Diversion as compared with otherwise similar offenders who received standard sentences in the year prior to implementation?
  • What are the costs and savings associated with Judicial Diversion as compared with case processing and sentencing practices employed with similar offenders in the year prior to implementation?

Funding Source: New York Unified Court System, Office of Court Administration

Start Date: November 2010

NPC Project Team

Principal Investigator

Michael Finigan, Ph.D.

Project Director

Shannon Carey, Ph.D.

Cost Analyst

Mark Waller, B.A.

Reports and Publications:

Waller, M. S., Carey, S. M., Farley, E. J., & Rempel, M. (March 2013) Testing the Cost Savings of Judicial Diversion: Final Report. Submitted to the New York State Unified Court System by the Center for Court Innovation and NPC Research.
Report / Fact Sheet /