Breaking the Cycle

About the Program

Category: Health (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

Chatham County created a Criminal Justice Advisory Council under our vision to achieve a superior quality of life within a safe, active and healthy environment. In 2017, Commissioner Helen Stone presented a resolution, calling her peers into action, soliciting support for Chatham County to participate in the Stepping Up Initiative. This initiative is a national model, presented in partnership by The American Psychiatric Association, National Association of Counties and Justice Center to reduce the number of individuals booked into county jail with mental illness. Stone served on the exploration and development phase to create a Chatham County Criminal Justice Advisory Council and maintains an active role. As a result, her efforts along with many community stakeholders, including Sheriff Wilcher, Chatham County launched a local initiative “Breaking the Cycle” aligning with the national model and supported by Bureau of Justice. The mission of “Breaking the Cycle” is to reduce the recidivism rate for offenders through an array of strategies focused on individuals with mental illness to include; (1) reducing the number of people booked in the Chatham County Detention Center, (2) shortening the length of stay at the jail, and (3) increase the percentage of individuals with connection to care.