Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion

also known as

Let Everyone Advance with Dignity

Let Everyone Advance with Dignity (formerly “Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion” aka LEAD) is a diversion program that aims to improve public safety and reduce criminal behavior. Under the LEAD program model, law enforcement officers connect low-level, non-violent offenders or individuals at high risk of arrest with social service providers in lieu of arrest.

In collaboration with Hawai’i Department of Health and the Office of the Governor's Coordinator on Homelessness, the Hawai’i state legislature funded the current program through the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division (ADAD) in 2017. The “LEAD HNL” pilot launched July 2018 and aimed to follow the original LEAD model by focusing specifically on people whose criminal activity is due to behavioral health issues. LEAD HNL’s intensive case management further aims to help individuals, many of whom have cycled in and out of jails and prisons, receive the assistance they need to face complex issues (e.g., homelessness, substance use, and mental illness).

Hawaiʻi Health and Harm Reduction Center (HHHRC) Let Everyone Advance with Dignity (formerly “Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion”) Honolulu (LEAD HNL) program on the Island of O‘ahu for the State of Hawaiʻi, including the neighbor islands of Kaua’i, Maui, and the Island of Hawaiʻi. The LEAD program as initiated in July 2018 in downtown Honolulu and with program expansion via Mental Health Kokua (Maui), Woman in Need (Kauai), and Big Island Substance Abuse Council (Island of Hawaii).

History

The original LEAD program in Seattle, Washington showed successful outcomes. After three years of operation, a 2015 study found that LEAD participants were 58% less likely to be arrested after enrollment in the program compared to a control group that went through “system as usual” criminal justice processing. Additionally, preliminary program data collected by case managers indicated that LEAD improved the health and wellbeing of people struggling with poverty, drug use, and mental health problems. Furthermore, the collaboration between stakeholders, who were often otherwise at odds with one another, proved an invaluable process-oriented outcome.