NY Times: Henry County DA & Diversion Programs Generates Big Bucks
Newspaper alleges misuse of program to keep non-violent offenders out of jail.
A story in today’s N.Y. Times says Henry County D.A. Doug Valeska gave preferential treatment to Harvey Drayton Burch III, a passenger in a car being driven by Valeska’s son:
“District Attorney Douglas A. Valeska granted him (Burch) pretrial diversion, an alternative to court that is usually reserved for nonviolent offenses. After Mr. Burch paid $2,396 in fees and stayed out of trouble for two years, the case was dismissed in 2011.”
That’s one in a series of accusations in the crime and punishment story, including the use of diversion, which the paper says is a money generating program for the county,
In the 1990s, Mr. Valeska had a string of convictions overturned for illegally striking blacks from the jury pool — a practice critics say continues to this day. He referred to one black defendant as “the yard boy.” He has never hired a black prosecutor.
Read the full story HERE.
