CHESTER, S.C. — The Chester County Sheriff’s Office received a $599,000 grant from the US Department of Justice to find a new way to fight the opioid and drug epidemic.
The sheriff said he will use the funds the start addressing the issue from within the detention center.
“Drug addiction should not be dealt with through the criminal justice system, it should be dealt with through the medical community and the mental health community,” Chester County Sheriff Max Dorsey said.
In a press conference on Tuesday morning, the sheriff, along with representatives from the prosecutor’s office, EMS, the coroner’s office, and nearby Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, revealed plans for the program.
Once the program is launched, inmates coming into the Chester County Detention Center will be screened. If there is a connection between the crimes they commit and addiction, the inmates will be given resources even while they’re behind bars.
The grant is for three years and after that, the sheriff’s office can re-apply for it.
“It will allow us…to go to the jail, make contact with that person, build a relationship, potentially even offer medication or medication-assisted treatment,” Maria Bates, the executive director at the Hazel Pittman Center, said.
ALSO ON WCNC: Mom who received rare transplant eats, drinks on her own for the first time in 10 years
The Hazel Pittman Center offers addiction treatment programs and partners with the Chester County Sheriff’s Office. Bates said it’s time for the community to start approaching the drug addiction problem in a new way.
Something similar is already in place in Lancaster County, where Sheriff Barry Faile said they’ve seen a 79% decrease in police encounters in those who participated.
“We’re excited that our community is beginning to look at addiction in a different way,” Bates said. “And I think that’s where the solution to addiction lies.”
According to law enforcement, in the last eight months, there were 74 reported overdoses in Chester County. Six of them were fatal.
For the last three years, Chester County has continued to see an increase in the number of overdoses and overdose-related deaths.
According to data shared by the Chester County Sheriff’s Office, two people died from an overdose in 2019. In 2020, that number went up to three. In 2021, deaths tripled to nine.
ALSO ON WCNC: 'I want him to have his justice' | Despite new overdose law, few charged with death by distribution
In conjunction with the new drug through the sheriff’s office, Sixth Circuit Deputy Solicitor Candice Lively, who serves as a prosecutor in Chester County, announced on Tuesday she’s bringing a drug court program to Chester County. A similar program is already in place in Lancaster County.
“They need help," Lively said. "When they get out, they’re going to re-offend, and it’s not because they have anything other than an addiction that needs help. ... We’re already screening people at the jail who can go through this program.”
The drug court program will allow non-violent offenders who hold a steady job and successfully go through the program, which can take two years, to get their records expunged. Essentially, it gives them a second chance.
“People can go through this program, do what needs to be done, get off drugs, get a job, and be very productive in our society,” Lively said. “That’s the whole point.”
Contact Indira Eskieva at ieskieva@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.