The Texas Bar Foundation awarded the Dallas County district attorney’s office a $12,500 grant to continue providing reliable transportation for young people navigating the criminal justice system.
The grant will fund transportation vouchers for people in Achieve Inspire Motivate court, a pre-adjudication diversion program for first-time felony offenders ages 18 to 24. Many AIM participants may lack accessible transportation or experience homelessness and unemployment. Dallas’ sprawl and limited public transit can make it almost impossible for some to stay in compliance with the program, the DA’s office said in a news release.
Transportation vouchers help eliminate those socioeconomic and geographic barriers and allow people to more easily attend court-ordered residential drug treatment, counseling, community service, meetings with case managers and hearings.
“To receive this money means continuing crucial work in Dallas County and sends a message that we care about our youthful offenders and want to see them making meaningful changes in their lives,” District Attorney John Creuzot said in a statement. “This money will go directly into the future of our communities, ensuring we break the cycle of recidivism and drive down costs for taxpayers in the process.”
According to a study from the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute commissioned by the DA’s office, AIM participants were 74% less likely to be arrested for a new offense two years after beginning the program compared to people on probation.
The study, published in 2021, also found the program saved participants and the legal system $6.86 for every dollar invested.
AIM was established in 2016 by then-DA Susan Hawk and continued by her successors. The 12-to-18 month program is centered around employment and education; before graduating, participants are required to complete their GED and find a job. Once they graduate, their charges are dismissed or expunged, the DA’s news release says.
Since its inception, more than 220 people have graduated from the program, according to the news release.
The Texas Bar Foundation first awarded the DA’s office a $10,750 grant for transportation vouchers in 2022, according to the group’s website.
