Do the crime, do the time? Program in Everett tests alternatives to jail

Rather than simply throwing someone in jail or hitting them with a fine, the Everett Municipal Court system is trying something out called the Community Justice Alternatives Program. As the title suggests, they’re offering alternative punishments to those who break the law.

We’re not talking about serious crimes, like murder or rape or carjackings.

We’re talking very specifically about non-felony criminal charges like trespassing or shoplifting. And as The Everett Herald points out, “The majority of the participants in the year-old program are living with mental illness.”

So how does this work? According to the Herald, “Participants must regularly attend court hearings and abide by various conditions, such as attending counseling sessions or meeting with the court’s liaison, a mental health professional from Bridgeways. Participants may be required to undergo drug screening or find housing.”

That’s not all, one punishment by Judge Laura Van Slyck to one woman was to write an essay about how her crimes negatively impact her community. Others are forced to write journals so they can document behavior, which presumably helps keep them out of trouble because you’re mindful of what you’re doing.

I suppose one could deem this controversial: If you shoplift or trespass, any stickler for the law, which I tend to be, will say, ‘You did the crime, do the time! Your little essay about what it means to shoplift doesn’t negate the fact that you hurt a small business trying to make a living in Everett.’

But the judge says, “We’re holding people accountable. We also have the opportunity through the program to look at the underlying issues, whether it’s mental illness or chemical dependency or both – whatever it is feeding into the criminal behavior.”

I think that’s an often overlooked aspect to fighting crime. There’s undoubtedly bad people out there who do really, really bad things, and they sometimes do it for no reason other than to be bad.

But there are some folks who are shoplifting, for example, to pay for a drug habit. We want that person punished, but it’s in our best interest as a community to treat the addiction. If that person gets off drugs:
1) they’ll likely stop shoplifting for their fix, but also

2) drug addicts can become a burden on our system and on our tax dollars the longer they are left untreated.

People like that tend not to be able to keep a job, which means they can’t pay the bills, which means the city doesn’t collect on the water or electric bill, the landlord doesn’t get the rent, city official’s time is wasted by having to deal with the person. They’re likely to use our health care system that you and I will have to pay for.

The list goes on and on.

It’s financially responsible for us to handle it – but it’s also a moral obligation, especially if we know about the behavior.

This program isn’t easy, so it’s hard to dismiss it as not a real punishment. These folks apparently have to attend court hearings every two weeks for the first two months, they have to have regular contact with the public defender and court liaison.

The judge gets progress reports and can impose sanctions if the rules aren’t being followed. To move ahead in the program, they must comply with the plans developed for them, which may include finding a job or enrolling in classes. The goal is to have them graduated in a year. It takes longer for some.

“I think it’s a very humanizing process,” public defender Laura Baird said. “We can have conversations and get at some of the root causes of why they’re engaging in criminal activity.”

It’s a very well-rounded approach to the problem of crime. The Herald says, “Most of the participants need assistance securing suitable housing and mental health treatment. The program relies on the treatment providers in the community, such as Compass Health and Evergreen Manor to work with the participants. The court doesn’t diagnose participants or development treatment plans but they can coordinate with counselors to hold people accountable. There are good resources out there, the judge said.”

Does this work? No idea. So far just three people have graduated from the program and the city is collecting data to see if this actually helps people long term. I hope it does.