MIDDLETON – (Radio & VIdeo) Essex County Sheriff Frank Cousins announced today that he will not be seeking re-election this year. He will finish his current term, serving into January 2017. Cousins also discussed in length the Sheriff’s Department’s Detox Program (Details in radio interview and text below)
Radio Interview with Essex County Sheriff Frank G. Cousins Jr. (With Bill Newell)
Detox Unit at Essex County’s Correctional Facility: A Business Model Approach to Addiction in Corrections
Sheriff Frank G. Cousins, Jr. is no stranger to new ventures in corrections. He has been known for his forward thinking and his ability to build bridges and establish relationships within the community. In the past few years under his leadership, the Essex County Sheriff’s Department has opened the Essex County Regional Emergency Communications Center (ECRECC), a state of the art dispatch center providing services for all of Essex County and portions of Middlesex and Suffolk Counties. The Department also opened a new Regional Support Services Building, utilizing the newest technology to streamline the admission and release of inmates. Additionally, Sheriff Cousins has dramatically enhanced community service and work release programs and expanded the Offices of Community Corrections in partnership with the Massachusetts Trial Court.
When it comes to rehabilitation and reentry programs, Sheriff Cousins has championed the “Step–down process” which enables inmates to transition from incarceration back into society. His commitment to the treatment of offenders is highlighted by the establishment of the Treatment and Recovery of Addictions in Corrections (TRAC) program, the “Essex County Re-Entry Center” at the department’s minimum security facility in Lawrence, and numerous drug and alcohol diversion programs at the Women in Transition Center in Salisbury. It therefore comes as no surprise the Essex County Sheriff’s Department, under Sheriff Cousins, has opened a new Detox Unit at the Middleton facility.
At the Essex County Correctional Facility in Middleton, the number of detox patients has increased 141% from 2011 to 2014. With these tragic statistics in mind, Sheriff Cousins has called for his staff to react to this demand. The implementation of the Detox Unit will enhance business practices and actually change the department’s business model. The Detox Unit provides an intensive treatment plan and pre-judicial track for addicts charged with crimes that were likely committed to support their habits. Typically these pretrial individuals go through a 1-3 day “spin-dry” detox process in jail while awaiting further notice from the courts, and as a result their addiction is never adequately addressed.
With this new process individuals will be remanded to the Essex County Sheriff’s Department’s Detox Unit by the presiding judge. Section 20B of Chapter 127 of the Massachusetts General Laws provides the Sheriff with the power and discretion to assign certain detainees to a pre-trial diversion program. Upon completion of the 28-day treatment program individuals may be able to dispose of their cases and utilize non-custodial tools as opposed to traditional incarceration. Individuals who successfully complete the program may be recommended to continue with services such as probation, employment counseling, day reporting at an Office of Community Corrections, drug testing, electronic monitoring, and in some instances sober houses.
Candidates for the Detox Unit
An individual must meet certain standards in order to be considered for the Detox Unit. The individual must be alleged to have committed a quality of life crime and cannot be deemed as either a sexual or violent offender. The Sheriff’s Department has recently identified certain individuals whose profiles, substance abuse history and current charges might make them suitable candidates for the Detox Unit.
In the summer of 2014, a young man was found using heroin in a local public library and arrested. He was held in jail on pre-trial status until being bailed. His case remained open for nearly a year until a subsequent court appearance where he received probation. In the fall of 2015, another young man was charged with heroin possession after allegedly stealing money from cars in a store parking lot as well as taking merchandise from the shelves and attempting to return it for a refund. The man stated that he wanted to get to Gloucester to benefit from that city’s program of referring opiate addicts to treatment. A judge ordered him held on pre-trial status until he returned to court a month later and his case was continued without a finding for one year.
Offenders such as these are the ideal candidates for the Detox Unit. Sheriff Cousins realizes these individuals have repeated involvement in the criminal justice system and need structured medical and behavioral assistance which the Detox Unit can provide. Approximately 10% of the pre-trial population currently housed at Essex County’s Middleton facility would likely be eligible, and benefit from, the all-encompassing treatment and services provided.
The Detox Unit falls squarely in line with Sheriff Cousins’ forward thinking and passion to reform the criminal justice system in a way which brings people and resources together, rather than strand individuals alone. People with opioid and substance abuse issues need structure, compassion and resources to help them succeed. The benefits of the Detox Unit will be felt by every family, every community and every county in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as the opioid epidemic does not discriminate and sees no race, age or gender.
* The Detox Unit opened December 7, 2015
Information supplied by Essex County Sheriff’s Office –
Maurice E. Pratt, Assistant Superintendent III
Director of Communication
Essex County Sheriff’s Department
