Casper diversion court, counseling center tell lawmakers program reduced jail days and saved taxpayer costs
November 08, 2025 | Appropriations, Joint & Standing, Committees, Legislative, Wyoming
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Eric Nelson, the Casper City Attorney, told the subcommittee the city's diversion program has enrolled dozens of people into treatment and produced measurable savings for the city.
"From 10/01/2024 through 11/05/2025 ... we've had 91 enrollments into the residential treatment program at Central Wyoming Counseling Center, 60 enrollments in the chemical dependency unit, 56 enrollments into the crisis stabilization center," Nelson said, and he added the city estimated about $349,272 in jail-cost savings from diverting people to treatment rather than incarceration.
Nelson said the program gives prosecutors and judges alternatives to fines and incarceration: participants can work off fines by participating in treatment and can receive clinical care that reduces reoffending. He told the committee at least 10 people had graduated residential treatment; several had repeated treatment episodes, reflecting the non-linear nature of recovery.
Central Wyoming Counseling Center staff described the program's outcomes in more detail. Their clinical director told the committee the majority of diverted participants complete treatment, return to families and work, and generate fewer police, EMS and fire calls.
Sheriff John Harlan of Natrona County said local detention resources are constrained and that appropriate treatment options reduce repeated jail bookings and associated costs. "It's expensive to incarcerate people," Harlan said, and he urged continued investment in community mental health and treatment alternatives.
Why it matters: Witnesses argued that sustained funding for community mental-health centers and diversion programs lowers incarceration costs, improves public safety and yields a return on investment by reducing repeated burdens on emergency services.
The subcommittee asked whether the program is spreading; Nelson said it has been piloted in other counties and that the municipal-court design offers flexibility that other courts can replicate. Committee members said they will weigh those outcomes as they consider budget priorities for behavioral health.
"From 10/01/2024 through 11/05/2025 ... we've had 91 enrollments into the residential treatment program at Central Wyoming Counseling Center, 60 enrollments in the chemical dependency unit, 56 enrollments into the crisis stabilization center," Nelson said, and he added the city estimated about $349,272 in jail-cost savings from diverting people to treatment rather than incarceration.
Nelson said the program gives prosecutors and judges alternatives to fines and incarceration: participants can work off fines by participating in treatment and can receive clinical care that reduces reoffending. He told the committee at least 10 people had graduated residential treatment; several had repeated treatment episodes, reflecting the non-linear nature of recovery.
Central Wyoming Counseling Center staff described the program's outcomes in more detail. Their clinical director told the committee the majority of diverted participants complete treatment, return to families and work, and generate fewer police, EMS and fire calls.
Sheriff John Harlan of Natrona County said local detention resources are constrained and that appropriate treatment options reduce repeated jail bookings and associated costs. "It's expensive to incarcerate people," Harlan said, and he urged continued investment in community mental health and treatment alternatives.
Why it matters: Witnesses argued that sustained funding for community mental-health centers and diversion programs lowers incarceration costs, improves public safety and yields a return on investment by reducing repeated burdens on emergency services.
The subcommittee asked whether the program is spreading; Nelson said it has been piloted in other counties and that the municipal-court design offers flexibility that other courts can replicate. Committee members said they will weigh those outcomes as they consider budget priorities for behavioral health.
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