Pass a Drug Test

Public Defender Deborah Albert-Heise said that drug and alcohol treatment has reached a stage of crisis, where inmates are not getting the help they need from Catholic Social Services.

Judge Brendan Vanston also said that the Wilkes-Barre based agency isn’t providing needed service.

The agency, which employs three full-time counselors, a part-time supervisor and a part-time office manager in Tunkhannock, recently reported that it would need an additional $40,000 in funding or it would have to reduce its staffing level, according to Wyoming County Commissioner Tony Litwin on Tuesday.

Around two weeks ago, Judge Vanston authorized county adult probation to provide $17,000 to Catholic Social Services, using money from an alcohol education fund.

Wyoming County District Attorney George Skumanick said that his office is considering providing funding, using money from a drug forfeiture money account.

Chief Probation Officer Christopher Ciprich said that he’d like Catholic Social Services to continue to work with the county and added, “They’ve done a good job.”

Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Drug and Alcohol Program currently provides $144,448 in funding to the agency, and the county provides around $8,000.

On Tuesday, drug and alcohol program administrator Mike Donahue said that concerns about the agency’s service will be addressed in an annual request for proposal process.

He added that Catholic Social Services, and another agency he wouldn’t name, have submitted proposals to provide service for the county.

Barb Landon of Wyoming County CARES, a local advocacy group, said that she has heard that inmates with drug treatment issues are not getting initial evaluations in a timely fashion and that concerns her greatly.

She said that CARES has provided detox kits to the Wyoming County facility, but is unclear as to how they actually are being used.

Also, Tuesday, during the prison board meeting, Warden Mickey Ameigh suggested that the county implement a mentoring program for inmates to reduce recidivism.

“I think it will be a wonderful thing to do,” he said.

Action on the warden’s proposal wasn’t taken.

Following the prison board meeting, the commissioners hired Helen Vermilya as a full-time employee and Stacy Lykens as a part-time employee for Wyoming County’s Nurse Family Partnership Program in Bradford County, pending completion of background checks.

Both women would be paid $16.83 an hour.

Also, commissioners dismissed Gary Wells, of Tunkhannock Township, as head cook for the jail. A replacement was not named.