Montgomery County District Attorney John Carney, Jr. and at least 25 out of the 31 district attorneys in Tennessee have thrown their support behind a proposal in the legislature that seeks to abolish pretrial diversions.

[Want to guess why?]

Details.

quote:

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Carney told the Leaf Chronicle newspaper that the pretrial diversions typically amount to a slap on the wrist for first-time offenders of serious crimes.

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We don't pretrial divert first degrees.

I'm a bit puzzled on the rationale. If the DAs think someone deserves a more serious punishment than a pt diversion, then they just don't give the diversion. It's a discretionary issue. Are "discretionary" diversions actually mandatory in some circumstances? I think the article needed some more information to explain what their concern actually is.

I find the article pretty weird. The bill would take away a discretionary option that prosecutors have, and yet it's supported by the great majority of DA's in the state. One of the DA's even says it's the most important legislation DA's have supported in 21 years.

Personally, I like having the discretion to come up with a response that best fits the offender and the circumstances.