Long Beach Health Department Awarded $8 Million to Provide Services to People Arrested, Charged or Convicted of Nonviolent Offenses
The Californer/10297529

Long Beach, CA ~ Long Beach, CA - The Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) has received a generous $8 million grant from the Board of State and Community Corrections to launch a new program aimed at assisting individuals who have been arrested, charged, or convicted of nonviolent offenses. The Long Beach Reentry Service and Diversion Program will work in collaboration with local community-based organizations to provide support for those with mental health or substance use challenges.

According to Mayor Rex Richardson, this program will address crucial gaps in reentry services by offering vital mental health and substance use treatment for nonviolent offenders. By providing these key support services, the program hopes to reduce recidivism and crime while also giving those who are justice-involved a second chance.

The Long Beach Reentry Service and Diversion Program has several goals it hopes to achieve. These include enhancing and increasing coordination of mental health, substance use treatment, diversion, and supportive services for justice-involved individuals in Long Beach. The program also aims to increase programming specifically designed for justice-involved youth between the ages of 15-24 and improve connections to specific mental health, substance use treatment, and supportive services for justice-involved women.

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Major services offered by the program will include individual and group therapy as well as psychiatric medication management to support mental health, substance use treatment, and pre-arrest diversion programs for both youth and adults. Additionally, the program will provide a range of supportive services such as case management, education and employment assistance, connection to housing, legal support, and even tattoo removal.

Health Department Director Alison King stated that the program will strengthen partnerships with local service providers in order to boost their capacity. Services will be provided through a trauma-informed and culturally responsive lens.

The Health Department is currently working on developing further details about the program and plans to announce more information in early 2025. The California Board of State and Community Corrections awarded the grant as part of their efforts to provide leadership to the adult and juvenile criminal justice systems. The funding for this program comes from state savings generated by the implementation of Prop 47, which reduced certain low-level drug and property crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.

The Long Beach Reentry Service and Diversion Program is a much-needed initiative that will not only provide crucial support for justice-involved individuals but also work towards reducing recidivism and crime in the community. With its focus on mental health, substance use treatment, and supportive services, this program has the potential to make a significant impact in Long Beach.

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