Job Court is a new program looking to help keep out of the criminal justice system while getting them into good-paying jobs.
It’s a one-year program with the hopes of changing lives for the better. But for it all to work, businesses have to get in on the plan.
So let’s say you commit a low-level crime, a non-assaultive crime, then you may be eligible to enter into the program where instead of going to jail, you go to work.
And if successful, a year later, your charges could be dropped for good.
“The most dangerous person out there is a person who has nothing to lose,” said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. “And we want to give them something to lose, and that’s a good-paying job with benefits.”
Nessel partnered with the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office in announcing the pilot program.
“In each case, a defendant is present who is willing to take accountability for their actions,” Nessel said. “Demonstrates a strong likelihood for rehabilitation and is tasked with meeting court-ordered requirements that they must fulfill. In exchange, their charges will be dropped, and the defendants are very likely to avoid any incarceration at all.”
Those eligible for the program must be charged with qualifying, low-level, no-assaultive offenses and be recommended by the prosecutor.
They’ll then be matched with Metro Detroit employers, some of which have already pledged their support for the program.
And there’s interest on both sides.
“I’ve had defense attorneys stopping me in the hallways, asking, ‘How can my client participate in this great program,’” said Sarah DeYoung of the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office. “‘How can my client get access to these opportunities?’”
The hope is to give people a chance before it’s too late.
“Job Court participants who successfully complete the one-year program will have the opportunity to dismiss the eligible charges and hopefully be on a pathway to a better future,” Nessel said.
Similar pilot programs are going on in Marquette and Genesee counties.
To start, they expect 200 people to take part in Wayne County’s program.
