Top law enforcers across Tennessee said they will continue their fight to repeal a law that allows first-time criminal offenders to escape admission of guilt even though legislation that would do so already has failed this year.
Legislation to abolish “pretrial diversion,” as the practice is called, had been a top focus in 2010 for the Tennessee Public Safety Coalition, which includes all the state’s district attorneys general and county sheriffs as members.
The coalition’s legislative delegate, D. Michael Dunavant, however, said they failed to convince the House Judicial Committee to approve a bill abolishing pretrial diversion, even though the measure passed the same committee in the Senate.
“We were really disappointed,” said Mr. Dunavant, who is the district attorney general for Lauderdale, Tipton, Fayette, Hardeman and McNairy counties near Memphis.