Local officials announce new prosecution program - East Idaho News
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Local officials announce new prosecution program

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POCATELLO — The Eastern Idaho Partnership and the Idaho Department of Correction has collaborated to fund and sponsor an attorney in its new federal and state prosecution initiative.

Bingham County Prosecuting Attorney Cleve Colson and U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho Wendy J. Olson announced Monday that James Dalton will serve as the first Eastern Idaho Partnership Special Assistant United States Attorney. Dalton will be housed in the U.S. Attorney’s Office to prosecute significant regional crime with a federal Nexus, Olson said.

Dalton will be working with local and regional law enforcement agencies in Eastern Idaho to investigate and prosecute serious offenders on a federal level, whose crime crosses various counties, or jurisdictional boundaries.

“This relatively small investment by these counties and cities can really leverage these limited resources to focus on the worst offenders and focus on those who are known to our law enforcement,” Dalton said

Mayor Rebecca Casper of Idaho Falls attended the event. She said this program should enable community members to feel safer for a number of reason.

“If someone is successfully prosecuted, it allows time for the community to heal and allows time for the criminal to hopefully be rehabilitated,” Casper said. “Overall we’re hoping for increased safety.”

Colson said this new program focuses on directly combatting regional crime that has an effect on individual communities.

“The most important aspect of this project is that as a regional partnership we will be enhancing the quality of life within our individual communities,” Colson said.

The Eastern Idaho Partners Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Project, or SAUSA Project, is modeled on the nine-year-old successful Treasure Valley Partners gang SAUSA program. Dalton said it has yielded a significant reduction in crime.

“The Treasure Valley gang SAUSA program demonstrated that coordinated law enforcement and governmental efforts at all levels is an effective, efficient crime reduction strategy,” said Olson. “Crime in our communities is not just a local problem or just a county problem or just a state problem or just a federal problem, it is a community problem that many times crosses jurisdictions. We have to work together to make our communities safer.”

The Eastern Idaho Partner entities are Bannock County, Bear Lake County, Bingham County, Bonneville County, Caribou County, Cassia County, Franklin County, Fremont County, Madison County, Minidoka County, Oneida County, Power County, City of American Falls, City of Aberdeen, City of Ammon, City of Blackfoot, City of Burley, City of Chubbuck, City of Heyburn, City of Idaho Falls, City of Malad, City of Pocatello, City of Preston, City of Rexburg, City of Rupert, City of Shelley, City of Soda Springs, City of St. Anthony and the City of Teton.

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