ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 introduces court diversion. The chapter begins by discussing conventional definitions of criminal justice diversion in the context of criminalised disabled people and introduces the various stages of the criminal justice process at which diversion can occur. The chapter then homes in on court diversion. This is defined as a legal process whereby a judge is able to make an order that moves a disabled person appearing before them on criminal charges into treatment and support provided by disability and mental health services, in lieu of a sentence (and sometimes even a conviction). Two legal frameworks of court diversion are then introduced: legislation available across all criminal courts, and creation of separate mental health courts. This chapter introduces some of the key scholarly arguments in favour of court diversion, which focus on reducing recidivism by facilitating access to disability and mental health services that can address underlying reasons for offending by criminalised disabled people. The chapter then discusses some of the concerns raised by scholars about the limitations or negative impacts of court diversion, including its coercive and ‘net widening’ aspects, its failure to address structural issues and its procedural limitations vis-à-vis criminal law.
