The Vera Institute’s Motion for Justice campaign brings together prosecutor’s offices and system-impacted communities to pilot and expand community-centered diversion programs that promote community safety by centering racial equity. Prosecutors are responsible for safety in their communities, but research shows that their reliance on incarceration can have devastating safety consequences. Those consequences, due to our country’s history of racial discrimination, are disproportionately borne by communities of color. To effectively pursue safety, prosecutors should explore new models of accountability that target the root causes of crime and work with marginalized communities to ensure those solutions meet their needs. The Motion for Justice campaign is for prosecutors and communities ready to answer that call to develop better and more equitable paths to safety.

In 2021, Vera piloted Motion for Justice with nine district attorney’s offices and 10 community-based organizations that partnered to implement diversion programs designed to reach marginalized communities. These bold models had three common criteria: they did not categorically exclude people based on conviction history, impose mandatory fines and fees, or require a guilty plea. With that equitable framework in place, each site focused on an issue based on the unique needs of its community, including: gun diversion, substance use disorder, homelessness, and restorative justice. Our programs served a range of ages, including children and emerging adults, and diverted hundreds of people away from the criminal justice system, providing much-needed services that strengthened communities. Each partnered prosecutor and community-based organization agreed to share program and office data with Vera, helping us measure the impacts of diversion programs on community safety and community health. Since the 2021 pilot, Vera has partnered with 10 more prosecutors’ offices to build or expand front-end diversion programs and research their impacts—with the campaign now including jurisdictions across 15 states.

District attorney’s offices selected to join the campaign partner with a local community-based organization to provide services for participants in the community rather than in carceral settings. The community-based organization receives funding to build capacity and support participants who will use their services. This model ensures that communities are consistently engaged and recognizes that restorative justice, healing, service provision, and relationship-building are more effective in the community, not behind bars. In doing so, the programs help improve long-term public safety, reduce crime, and save money.

Learn more about how prosecutors can center racial equity in every aspect of their role.