Massachusetts diversion programs have helped clients obtain jobs and have enabled courts to view each offender as an individual. Program evaluation is an essential component of any diversion program. New Jersey's pretrial diversion program operates under court rule, not legislation as in Massachusetts. Most diversion clients in New Jersey would have been placed on probation; their places are now taken by more serious offenders who would have been incarcerated. Hudson County's diversion program receives 1,500 applications each year for admittance but rejects those offenders charged with very serious or very minor offenses, as well as the mentally disturbed. Each client is assessed at intake, and referral agencies are contracted. Counselors ensure that clients understand their responsibilities as part of the client-program contract. Clients can have their criminal records expunged if they successfully complete the program. To establish a diversion program, planners must obtain local support (from prosecutors, judges, and the community) and should plan to evaluate the program before 6 months have passed to assess client suitability for the program. In Hudson County, about 50 percent of the applicants are rejected for lack of cooperation. Some officials oppose diversion programming because it discriminates against the poor and minorities, ascribes guilt to offenders who might otherwise not be convicted in a traditional system, and removes pressure from the criminal justice system to reform (i.e., by relabeling jails as community treatment centers). Another speaker points out the pros and cons of restitution programs and outlines its use since the 12th century. The New Jersey Chief Justice suggests that registries of all resources available to rehabilitate offenders be compiled for judicial use during sentencing.