Prosecutor Ryan Lufkin is scrambling for ways to combat the disturbing number of people who die each year from heroin overdoses. Lufkin started documenting the sad circumstances of each of these deaths in Multnomah County and has a binder full: 52 in 2010, and at least 70 in 2011.  The threat of jail - and court orders to attend drug treatment - just isn't doing the job.  Today Lufkin will urge legislators in Salem to consider expanding the definition of the mentally ill to include heroin addicts, paving the way for the state to hold a hearing to "commit" or force repeat users into inpatient or outpatient drug treatment within days of arrest, before they're released from jail.  Prosecutors say the current system of sentencing heroin addicts to drug treatment at the time of conviction fails because months can pass between arrest and conviction as many addicts skip court dates.  HB 4022 would finance drug treatment with state money that now pays for jail time -- about $93 a day. 

LA CROSSE, Wis. -- An alarming number of prosecutors in Wisconsin are leaving their jobs, not long after starting. The turnover rate for assistant district attorneys (ADA's) is nearing 20% and is much higher than other public sector jobs. That's according to a recent study published by Dennis Dresang, a professor at UW-Madison's law school. Some say the dwindling experience of prosecutors is creating a public safety risk. "I think our crime victims in the state of Wisconsin deserve better," said Dan Cary, Monroe County's District Attorney since 2003. The study found that those who decided to leave the profession cited compensation as the number one reason. Not only is the pay not comparable to the private sector, the ADA's surveyed complained that the system does not recognize experience or job performance.

INDIANAPOLIS - Marion County prosecutors are giving some who broke the law a do over, offering out-of-towners who committed misdemeanors in Super Bowl Village a chance to fulfill their obligation with a donation to local charity, instead of community service. Those visitors pleading or ruled guilty to a misdemeanor will pay a fine. But instead of the traditional requirement of community service, they can give a $100 donation to the Clothe a Cop fund. If violators decide not to donate, they will have to complete 16 hours of community service in Indianapolis. "If you are from out of state, it's really hard to have them give you 16 hours of community service to the east side when you live in California," Deputy Prosecutor Allison Broviak said. Locals also can participate in the diversion program - which clears the charge from the participant's record - but they can't get out of the 16 hours of community service. The Clothe a Cop program is geared toward buying clothes for needy children.