Solem discussed various Regional Correction Center duties
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HURON – Methamphetamine is a highly addictive controlled substance that is a major problem in Huron, but Beadle County’s drug court – functioning now for four years – is successfully turning around the lives of otherwise prison-bound individuals, Sheriff Doug Solem said Thursday.
The Regional Correction Center can house up to 62 inmates. Last week, 35 were doing time in jail, 27 of them for drug use.
“A big share of it has to do with methamphetamine,” Solem said at the annual State of the County luncheon.
“It costs us money not only to feed these people, tax dollars, but transferring them down to Yankton if so needed for mental health. It’s also putting a burden on Community Counseling,” he said.
Inmates who need to see a doctor have their medical expenses covered by county dollars as well.
But drug court, an alternative to prison for men and women who apply and are accepted, is working, the sheriff said at the luncheon, hosted by the Huron Chamber & Visitors Bureau Governmental Affairs Committee, in conjunction with the Huron Kiwanis meeting.
Thirteen addicts are currently enrolled in the drug court treatment program.
They are highly supervised, attend classes and meet with a magistrate judge once a week to talk about what’s going on in their lives. But they remain in town and employed.
“The idea behind drug court is to keep them sober and keep them in the community, and it’s been working,” Solem said.