SEQUIM — If you’re arrested for shoplifting here later this year, you may not be headed for prosecution.
And if you’re found driving with a suspended license, the Sequim Police officer who caught you may not write you a ticket to District Court.
The city of Sequim is eyeing pre-prosecution diversion, a procedure that gives nonviolent offenders a chance to stay out of court, keep their records clean and save taxpayers money.
During its meeting Monday night, the Sequim City Council discussed contracting with Friendship Diversion Services, a private company with offices across Washington, to handle such cases.
The council voted 5-1, with member Erik Erichsen dissenting, to have City Attorney Craig Ritchie bring a draft contract back for review at a future council meeting.
Ritchie hopes to present the contract at the Oct. 12 meeting, which will begin at 6 p.m. in the Sequim Transit Center, 190 W. Cedar St.
Minor offenders
Ritchie explained Friendship Diversion keeps minor offenders off of court dockets — and in some cases out of jail — by diverting them into community service work and to counseling and workshops related to their crimes.
In some cases, Ritchie added, offenders also pay restitution to victims.
He emphasized that each case diverted from court would save the city about $400 in filing and other fees, along with saving the offender from having a conviction on his or her record.
Erichsen objects
But Erichsen wasn’t persuaded.
“If someone commits a crime and we’re letting them off because it saves us money,” Erichsen considers that less than beneficial to the community.
Ritchie replied that only misdemeanors, such as driving with a suspended license, are eligible for diversion.
Possession of less than 40 grams of marijuana is a crime for which some cities allow diversion, he said. The offender would perform community service and attend anti-drug classes rather than paying a steep fine and spending a day or so in jail.
“That’s not one we plan to divert initially,” Ritchie said, but it’s an example of the nonviolent offenses that are suitable for diversion.
People accused of domestic violence, by contrast, are not eligible.
“Doesn’t one [crime] lead to the other?” Erichsen asked.
“If you don’t handle it in the first place, it can lead to more and more . . . so perhaps the more strict the enforcement at the beginning, the less chance it’s going to happen again.”
Mayor Pro Tem Ken Hays then asked whether Friendship Diversion would give a presentation at a future council meeting, and Ritchie responded that “they would love to.”
Friendship already contracts with Clallam County and the city of Port Angeles for pre-prosecution diversion services, said Ronnie Wuest, branch manager for Clallam and Jefferson counties.
Offender pays cost
In most cases, the offender — not the city or county — pays the cost of Friendship’s services, Wuest added. Depending on the offense, the per-case fee runs from $275 on up.
Local government and other nonprofit agencies benefit too from diversions, according to Friendship’s Web site, www.Friendship Diversion.org. In 2008, diverted offenders finished 30,796 hours of community service at such agencies.
Sequim Police Chief Robert Spinks spoke on behalf of diversion during Monday’s council discussion.
The practice can help steer a youthful offender away from criminal behavior, he said, and it can be a wise way to spend the taxpayers’ money.
“This is one of those areas where people are trying to think out of the box,” the chief added.
“There are limited amounts of resources [the city] can spend . . . and we want to use those resources as judiciously as possible,” to deal with more serious crimes.
If each person who drives with a suspended license or commits some other “low grade” offense is sent to court for prosecution, Spinks added, “we will bust our budget.”
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley reporter Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladaily news.com.
