September VIP Graduation
The Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court graduated three participants of the Violence Intervention Program (VIP) on Tuesday, September 1.
VIP is designed to assist emerging adult participants, ages 18 to 26 years old, who are arrested with a weapon, but did not use that weapon in a crime. The program works to prevent felony offenders with gun-related specifications from becoming a gun-violence or even homicide-related statistic.
The three graduates completed a four-stage program which keeps a felony gun conviction off their records, a key to future employment opportunities.
VIP receives support from the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judges, the Court’s Probation Department, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, the Office of the Public Defender, and other agency stakeholders.
The program is funded by a grant from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Affairs and accepts up to 50 participants per year.
(Judge Sheehan thanks the VIP team)