10 Mass. sheriffs receive $310K in federal grants to treat inmate drug use
The grants allow the state “to invest in programs that improve reentry outcomes and reduce the likelihood that a person will reoffend in the future"
Norfolk County Sheriff Patrick McDermott’s office is one of 10 sheriffs’ offices in Massachusetts awarded a federal grant to treat drug use in their jails. (Staff Photo By Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)
“Substance use disorder can profoundly impact the lives of those who experience it, as well as their families and communities,” Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement announcing the disbursal. “These funds will help ensure that incarcerated individuals have access to essential services that will help them return to their communities healthier, stronger and better equipped to sustain a positive future.”
Eight of the 10 offices across the commonwealth received grants of $30,000 while two offices in the state’s west received $35,000 from the
Residential Substance Abuse Treatment for State Prisoners Program
, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and managed by state receiving agencies, which in this case is the state Office of Grants and Research (OGR).
The DOJ says the grant program “enhances the capabilities of state, local, and tribal governments to provide residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment to adult and juvenile populations during detention or incarceration” and through the reentry process through funding “community-based treatment and other recovery aftercare services.”
State Public Safety and Security Secretary Terrance Reidy said that “Reducing recidivism is a key element of our public safety strategy” and that the grants allow the state “to invest in programs that improve reentry outcomes and reduce the likelihood that a person will reoffend in the future.”
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics said that 8 in 10 state prisoners, and even more state jail inmates, had used illegal drugs in their lives, with only slightly fewer — more than 7 in 10 for both prison and jail inmates — were regular drug users. About half of state prison inmates and nearly ⅔ of jail inmates sentenced for violent crimes “met the criteria for drug dependence or abuse,” according to the
June 2017 report
.
Inmates who participate in rehabilitation programs while incarcerated do show reduced recidivism, according to at least one state study in Massachusetts. A multi-year Massachusetts
Department of Correction study
released in March showed that of the 9,000 moderate- to high-risk reoffenders studied, those who participated in the DOC’s Correctional Recovery Academy and attained a GED were less than half as likely to reoffend in their first year of release, at 7.8% compared to 19.7%.
Awarded sheriff offices
Each of the following offices were awarded $30k grants unless otherwise specified: Barnstable; Berkshire $35k; Bristol; Essex; Hampshire $35k; Middlesex; Norfolk; Worcester; Franklin; and Plymouth.
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