WAS DRUG TREATMENT AVAILABLE FOR INMATE?

Recently The Blade reported that a woman hanged herself in the Lucas County
jail. She had been charged with the selling or distribution of drugs.

I don't know the particulars of her case, but I have to wonder if drug
treatment was ever available for her. Unfortunately, she felt suicide was
her only option.

When people break the law they must pay their debt to society. However,
today close to 80 per cent of the people in jail (local, state, federal)
have a substance-abuse problem. If we don't address the substance-abuse
problem, the chance of changing the criminal behavior is very minimal.

Treatment works. We need to make it more readily available and to be more
integrated with the criminal justice system. If that were the case, this
woman may have had a chance in turning her life around and would still be
with us today.

WILLIAM D. SANFORD
Chief Executive Officer
Compass Corporation for Recovery Services