Fresh Start Initiative for Offenders Kicks Off in Westchester
Fresh Start, a joint initiative of Westchester County Executive George Latimer and District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah, has officially served its first five individuals.
Through the program, the DA’s Office identifies qualified first-time, non-violent criminal offenders and provides them an opportunity to avoid prosecution and the potential for a criminal record. The current Fresh Start pilot project serves the Greenburgh and White Plains communities.
“These are the things that collaboration across county government can do,” Latimer said. “By working together, we can develop and implement new models, new programs, and new ways to improve people’s lives. The end result of these kinds of efforts is safer communities, lower crime rates, and fewer people with lives saddled with criminal convictions.”
To complete the program, people who would otherwise have to appear in court and go through the criminal justice process participate in a three-hour facilitated session, provided as an adjunct to the county’s Treatment Alternatives for Safer Communities (TASC).
“We are thrilled to expand our community-based diversion efforts for first-time, low-level offenders by offering an exciting and innovative program that starts with the simple idea that people deserve second chances, and incarceration is not always the answer,” Rocah said. “Fresh Start breaks the destructive cycle of recidivism by focusing on rehabilitation instead of incarceration for certain types of crime.”
Community Mental Health Commissioner Michael Orth added, “This is a big step in the effort to identify people who can early on be diverted from the criminal justice system. We know that a certain percentage of those who commit lower-level criminal offenses, unless they participate in some type of intervention, can go on to commit more serious offenses. Fresh Start identifies those with lower-level charges at the earliest possible opportunity, and works to redirect them away from potential criminal behavior. Today a small group of people made that big step for the first time in Westchester County.”
While only serving two municipalities now, Fresh start is anticipated to go county-wide in the future.
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
