Stories of Success: A Qualitative Analysis of Diversion Officials' Experiences With Clients Who Completed Prosecutor-Led Diversion.

Prosecutor-led diversion programs are a promising alternative to incarceration. This study explores how diversion officials perceive and facilitate successful diversion programming for clients to provide information to the field that may enhance the impact of diversion programming. Eleven diversion officials were recruited via snowball sampling across 10 jurisdictions. We explored their experiences in designing and implementing diversion programs using phenomenological qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews. Diversion officials' experiences had two categories: perception and facilitation of success. Themes of perception are related to how the prosecutor understands crime (conceptualization of crime), clients' investment in diversion and accountability (aha moments), and client transformation (re-defining outcomes). Themes of facilitation include interpersonal strategies to enhance engagement (alliance), use of discretion (discretion), and empowerment through collaboration (partnership). A humanistic approach appears most effective, helping clients thrive by emphasizing life outcomes that extend beyond traditional legal and justice system processing.