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PART IV: (LASTLY) - BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE

 

We will continue to 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑼𝑵𝑰𝑻𝑬𝑫 against the war on drugs. We will be more 𝑷𝑹𝑶𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑰𝑽𝑬 in drug enforcement and arresting any and all involved in the drug epidemic. We will continue our partnership with the East Central Drug Task Force. For those who are serious about wanting help, we will offer them the resources to lead a healthier, drug free life. For those who want to continue to pollute our county, the message will be clear that Montgomery County will not tolerate their lifestyle.

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I have come to this realization, 𝑾𝑬 𝑪𝑨𝑵𝑵𝑶𝑻 𝑨𝑹𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑻 𝑶𝑼𝑹 𝑾𝑨𝒀 𝑶𝑼𝑻 𝑶𝑭 𝑨 𝑷𝑹𝑶𝑩𝑳𝑬𝑴. The arrest alone, is only the first step in solving the problem, 𝑴𝑶𝑹𝑬 𝑯𝑨𝑺 𝑻𝑶 𝑩𝑬 𝑫𝑶𝑵𝑬.Those arrested are often re-introduced back into our communities, this is a reality. With this being the case, why not focus on what happens 𝑨𝑭𝑻𝑬𝑹 the arrest. If they are being re-introduced back into our communities and are serious about wanting to be drug-free, why not work at solving the problem, in hopes that they may become productive citizens of the county.

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Behavioral health and substance abuse problems are issues nationwide and Montgomery County is no exception. Our citizens are struggling with depression, anxiety, autism, bi-polar disorders and addictions that ravage their lives, their families and our communities. We must realize that if a person has unresolved behavioral health issues---we will likely see them over and over in our jails, resulting in an over-utilization of county resources that yield zero results.

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My experience in law enforcement has shown behavioral health and substance abuse go hand in hand. We see it time and time again, someone gets arrested and we discover they were self-medicating with illicit drugs as a substitution for caring for their mental well-being or their mental health condition led them to substance abuse.

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𝑾𝑬 𝑾𝑰𝑳𝑳 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄 𝑻𝑶 𝑺𝑼𝑷𝑷𝑶𝑹𝑻:

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• 𝐃𝐑𝐔𝐆 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓: Currently we have Drug Court which is a judicially supervised court docket that provide a sentencing alternative of treatment combined with supervision for people living with serious substance use and mental health disorders. 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬, I have witnessed this first hand but, it is not for everyone and I feel we need more options.

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• 𝐂𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌 (𝐂𝐈𝐓) We will continue to participate in 𝐂𝐈𝐓 meetings.and ensure all staff receive CIT training.

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𝑾𝑯𝑬𝑵 𝑬𝑳𝑬𝑪𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑺𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑭𝑭, 𝑾𝑬 𝑾𝑰𝑳𝑳 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐈𝐓 𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐏 𝐅𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐘:

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• 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: Collaborating with our mental health partners, such as, the Arthur Center and other community agencies so that we can better find resources and support for people suffering from behavioral health and substance abuse issues.

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• 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐄𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐋 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐇 𝐒𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: While in jail, we will have repeated screenings for behavioral health issues. This will identify inmates who are struggling and were not identified during the booking process. Upon identifying these inmates, we will be able to address it either within the jail or in partnership with behavioral health professionals in the communities.

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• 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏𝐒: Partnering with our courts so that persons with behavioral health issues can not only be fairly adjudicated but also encouraged to get treated for their substance use or behavioral health problems. There is extensive stigma around acceptance of and getting help for mental health and substance abuse issues. We hope that we can as a Sheriff’s office, help reduce shame and fear as barriers to getting treatment.

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• 𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐈-𝐃𝐑𝐔𝐆 𝐂𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐒: Increased pro-activity in anti-drug campaigns for our children and raise public awareness of available resources to those in the community who struggle with drug abuse and desire a new life.