DALLAS — October 9, 2026 — Dallas County District Attorney write-in candidate Eric Reed today called for a public performance scorecard covering every diversion program administered or supported by the District Attorney’s Office.
“Diversion should be judged by measurable results, not press releases or unvetted social media posts,” Reed said. “Dallas County taxpayers should know how many people are referred, how many are accepted, how many complete these programs and what measurable effect they have on recidivism and public safety.”
The District Attorney’s Office participates in felony and misdemeanor pretrial intervention, mental-health diversion, DIVERT Court and programs connected to STAR Court and other specialty courts. Its Restorative Justice webpage explains eligibility and application procedures but does not provide a centralized, current account of program capacity, participation, completion rates, recidivism or total costs.
Some information is available elsewhere in county records. Fiscal year 2026 documents list capacity for individual specialty courts, including 150 participants for DIVERT Court and 70 for STAR Court. Separate resource guides disclose some participant fees and waiver options. Residents, however, must search multiple department pages, meeting packets and program documents to assemble even a partial picture.
“That is not meaningful transparency,” Reed said. “If the public cannot easily determine whether a program is full, who it serves, what it costs and whether it works, the office cannot credibly claim that its diversion strategy is accountable.”
Community organizations have demonstrated that measurable reporting is possible. According to The Lab Report Dallas, Lone Star Justice Alliance reports that its HYPE Center has served more than 200 young people and placed 154 in jobs. Sixty-eight percent remained employed six months later. The organization reports an 11 percent three-year rearrest rate and a cost of approximately $10,000 per participant, compared with $281,243 to incarcerate a juvenile for one year.
Reed said nonprofit organizations provide critical treatment, employment, housing and mentoring services, but the county cannot shift responsibility to outside partners without measuring access and outcomes.
Under Reed’s leadership, the District Attorney’s Office would publish a quarterly diversion report showing:
• Access and capacity: Referrals, acceptance decisions, available spaces, waiting lists and average time between referral and placement.
• Outcomes and costs: Completions, unsuccessful exits, rearrests, participant fees, fee waivers and taxpayer cost per participant.
• Program accountability: Eligibility standards, reasons for rejection, outside service providers and the results required for continued public funding or partnership.
The reports would protect confidential information and would not identify individual participants.
Reed began developing treatment-based alternatives to incarceration in 1994 while working with tribal, state and federal agencies on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation. Reed’s reforms led to the first jail-based treatment facility in the United States, providing inpatient care for those serving jail sentences, outpatient care for probationers and voluntary participants seeking sobriety. The program reduced recidivism on the reservation by 78% and eventually expanded to 17 other tribal nations. That work began four years before Dallas County’s DIVERT Court opened in 1998.
“Effective diversion is not leniency,” Reed said. “It is a public-safety strategy that holds people accountable while addressing the conditions driving repeated contact with the justice system. Programs that work should be strengthened and those that fail should be corrected or replaced.”
About Eric Reed for District Attorney:
Eric Reed is a Dallas trial attorney and former prosecutor with more than three decades of experience in criminal law, federal and tribal courts, and complex litigation. He is running as a write-in candidate for Dallas County District Attorney on a commitment to Promote Public Safety • Demand Fairness • Ensure Accountability.
To vote for Eric Reed, select the write-in option in the Dallas County District Attorney race and enter the name Eric Reed.
For more information, visit www.WriteinReed.com.
Media Contact: media@writeinreed.com
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