On Wednesday morning, a workshop on prison reform drew more than 100 participants who wanted to talk about mental health care. The rally, held at Direct Relief's Santa Barbara headquarters, followed a grand jury report last year that outlined serious deficiencies in mental health care in Santa Barbara County jails. The report sparked a backlash against Sheriff Bill Brown, who runs the jail, and the jail. Wellpass, the prison's private healthcare provider.
Sheriff Brown began the conversation by highlighting current policies aimed at expanding behavioral health care in county jails. Last summer, the jail installed five behavioral health units (BHUs) in the north and south county jails, allowing them to serve up to 96 inmates in need of mental health treatment.
He also highlighted Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) programs, which primarily focus on assisting individuals with substance use disorders through medication and behavioral therapy. There are currently 80 patients enrolled in the program, up from about 40 in March last year, he added.
Brown ended his statement by urging additional funding to renovate parts of South County's “aging” main jail. “Running is a big challenge. Being an inmate inside a prison is an even bigger challenge,” Brown said, adding that she hopes prisons become places where positive change happens.
The Sheriff's Office also conducts mandatory crisis intervention training for all detention deputies, where they learn about non-force de-escalation tactics, suicide prevention and behavioral disorders. Since 2021, more than 40 MPs have participated in the 40-hour course.
But Lt. Joe Schmidt of the Sheriff's Department of Training cites high turnover among sheriff's deputies as a major challenge in requiring this “mandatory after-hours” training. Without a pay increase, he said, the sheriff's office is trying to focus on the overall well-being of its employees and a strong work-life balance to keep deputies on the job for a long time.
Advocates with the Clergy and Lay Coalition for Economic Justice (CLUE) identified in a sea of red scarves speak out for more mental health and drug-focused treatment options and overall contract compliance from WellPath. asked.
Wellpath and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office have come under intense scrutiny following a 2017 lawsuit against Santa Barbara County. Malay The case would find that the prison failed to “provide at least adequate medical and mental health care to persons within the prison.” As a result, the county and sheriff's office agreed to a remediation plan, and the court agreed that the plan would address the following issues: Malay Exposure.
The plan had a deadline for full compliance in 2023, but the county obtained an extension from the ordinance in August of that year. Malay The lawyer said he could not respond in time. However, the extension included 14 additional measures that county jails must adhere to in order to achieve full compliance, which is WellPath's primary mission.
Maureen Earls, co-chair of CLUE's Criminal Justice Workgroup, said: “Of the 15 charts recently reviewed that demonstrate compliance among people suffering from mental illness and in restrictive housing, There's only one.''
CLUE, the League of Women Voters, and the county supervisors in attendance agreed that WellPath's activities require further oversight. The new WellPath oversight plan would give behavioral services and public health officials more authority over WellPath's role in county jails to ensure timely contract compliance.
Speakers highlighted that 60% of the prison population, or more than 400 people, need mental health treatment, yet there are no mental health professionals on site 24 hours a day.
One community member who said he had a history of mental illness or incarceration said during the Q&A that he felt “triggered.” She called the current prison environment a “total failure” and said she felt “another prison should be funded.” Malay If the situation does not change, we will sue.”
Wellpass staff were also present during the discussion, but were unable to provide an answer on the spot. Superintendent Das Williams asked how many medical staff were at the prison at any given time, but no one in the room could answer. He was faced with the same answer when asked about the ratio of inmates to medical staff in county jails.
“There's a desire to make the system work better, and I think that's pretty universal,” Williams said of the workshop participants.
Supervisors Joan Hartman and Laura Capps were central to organizing the meeting, and both advocated for “interagency cooperation” between the county's health department and attorney's office to address the issue. emphasized its importance.
The board of supervisors is expected to vote later this month on whether to renew the contract with Wellpass.
