The Suffolk County District Court is stepping up its efforts to combat the opioid epidemic with the formation of a diversionary program that allows some offenders facing drug possession charges to participate without entering a guilty plea.

The program, which will be accessible for nonviolent defendants who have minimal criminal histories, is the third to be launched in New York; the first was established in Buffalo City Court in May 2017 and the Bronx Criminal Court followed suit later in the year.