Lane County now says its new drug deflection program won’t be ready by Oct. 1, as was previously planned.
Deflection is meant for people with substance abuse or associated behavioral disorders who commit low-level crime. This includes trespassing, possession of a small amount of drugs, or theft of less than $100 in value.
Arresting officers will be able to call a peer navigator out to a scene, and if an offender agrees to treatment, they won't face criminal charges. Ideal Option, an outpatient clinic with locations in Eugene and Springfield, will oversee the navigation process.
Lane County’s Program Coordinator Clint Riley said the county will employ five peer navigators and a supervisor. He said the contracts are now ready, and the hiring process has started.
However, he said these hires will still need to be onboarded, and the county has to make sure its 11 police agencies understand how to use this new tool.
“Each agency is going to launch as we're comfortable bringing them on," said Riley. "We expect that to happen as we go into October, and through October.”
Offenders will be ineligible for deflection if they have domestic violence or sex crime convictions, or are under active investigation for another non-deflectable crime.
Riley said people also won't be deflected if they have a severe and persistent mental health illness that prevents them from safely engaging with navigators.
Lane County has received over $2 million in state funding for its deflection program. The money comes from Oregon House Bill 4002, which also re-criminalized low-level drug possession.
