Joshua Sebold
Staff Writer
11/4/2009

A year and a month since the closure of Plumas County’s Alcohol and Drug Department, the opinion of most prominent figures working with groups suffering from alcohol and drug problems seems to be relatively unanimous: services are less available for many people who need them.

 The largest service gap is in the demographic of people who aren’t currently involved in the criminal justice, social services or mental health systems and can’t afford to pay for counseling or therapy.
The irony is the only way someone without financial means can get professional counseling or therapy in the county right now is to be arrested, diagnosed with a mental health issue or be part of a family involved with Child Protective Services.

 

Essentially, there is no preventative wing to the county’s current alcohol and drug service network because most people can’t get professional attention until after they have had a major problem such as an arrest.
The current system of drug and alcohol services has been cobbled together by several county departments, private entities and the Plumas Superior Court.

Those who can afford to pay can go to private therapists and counselors or an entity like Plumas Rural Services, which has certified A&D counselors on staff.

Programs like Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and the Plumas Crisis Intervention and Resource Center can provide compassion and peer counseling, but aren’t equipped to give professional help to those whose needs go beyond encouragement and understanding.

The Plumas Superior Court is putting the finishing touches on a one-of-a-kind effort to become the only court in the state to administer Drug Court and the Defender Treatment Program.

According to Judge Ira Kaufman, every other iteration of these programs in California involves a county administering the program and contracting with a court.

Both programs are alternatives to prison for drug offenders.

Kaufman said a year in prison costs taxpayers $35,000, while the same period of time under the jurisdiction of drug court costs $7,000.

Those involved in either program get individual outpatient treatment or group counseling through a contract between the court and PRS.

Juveniles in the criminal law system with substance abuse problems were getting help through a grant in May and June that was handled by the superior court, probation and PRS until it expired at the end of the fiscal year.
Court Executive Officer Debbie Norrie said she was hopeful the grant would be approved again for the current fiscal year, but that the approval process was slow and cumbersome.

Kaufman added he expected those services would be in place again in November.
He also emphasized the court wasn’t using any of the money associated with these programs to administer them because he didn’t think that would be ethical.

People in need of DUI classes to regain driving privileges have multiple options with two private groups offering classes in the county.

Plumas County Mental Health Department Director John Sebold reported his department helped people with drug and alcohol issues when possible.

“In cases where an individual has a co-occurring mental health diagnosis, we are doing our best to provide mental health treatment while addressing the addiction issues,” he said

“We are providing a treatment group for parents with alcohol and substance abuse/dependency problems that are referred by the Department of Social Services and family court system.”

Where is the state?
Asked about the state of alcohol and drug services, County Administrative Officer Jack Ingstad said services were worse than when the department was in place, but the fiscal burden, including audit exceptions running through multiple fiscal years, had been too large to keep it open.

He also confirmed the state hadn’t yet stepped in, as county officials had predicted it would, and filled the gap left by the department’s demise.

Ingstad explained the state has been cutting back on those services and seemed to prefer a local provider administer the program.

Hank Eisenman, the last chairman of the now defunct Alcohol and Drug Advisory Board, which used to provide guidance to the alcohol and drug department, said the state might not become involved in the county’s service vacancy unless there was a crisis or lawsuit.

Moving forward
PRS Executive Director Michele Piller indicated her organization has tried to take the county’s place, lobbying to receive and administer the funds that Plumas used to get from the state, but the state has resisted giving the job to anyone but the county itself.

She added PRS was currently trying to get a treatment center in Plumas County, which could offer inpatient services, an option currently unavailable in the county, even for those who could afford to pay for it.
Undersheriff Greg Hagwood agreed an inpatient treatment center would ultimately need to be developed within the county.

He pointed out everyone always thinks a treatment center is important for the county but people never want it to be placed “in their backyard.”

Regardless, he said there had to be a way to bring a center into the county “without infringing on the sensibilities of any individual community.”

Hagwood also said the nature of drug and alcohol prevention efforts would have to change in the future.
He admitted having cops go into classrooms to speak to children about the dangers of drugs was fulfilling for the officers, but argued a much more effective means of reaching children would be to educate parents.
The undersheriff said an officer in the classroom was “a valuable tool,” but people attached an unrealistic value and expectation to that type of action.

Hagwood said parents and home life had a massively larger impact on children than a once-a-week or monthly classroom visit from an officer.

On a personal note, he said during his career he arrested two of his students from when he was a DARE officer on homicide charges. In 2008, one of the students, who was a key actor in the “Every 15 Minutes” program, was arrested for DUI the weekend after the annual anti-drunk driving presentation.

Hagwood reported the sheriff’s office recently received a grant for drug enforcement and prevention, and he would be working with the Plumas Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs Coalition to host townhall meetings in Portola, Quincy, Chester and Greenville for input from community members about what they think are the most pressing concerns relating to alcohol and drug problems.

He said the coalition would have no control over the grant funds but would be invited to participate in meetings and other events.

The coalition
The coalition is an organization of citizens attempting to address the gap in services.

Coalition chairman Mike Kirk listed several of the most active members as co-chair Lynn Desjardin, secretary Patricia Sims, Ann Gaudet from PCIRC, California Highway Patrol Commander Paul Davis and Kathleen O’Bryan from the Plumas County Public Health Department’s Tobacco Reduction Program.
He added that candidates for sheriff, Undersheriff Greg Hagwood and former Plumas County deputy Bob Shipp, were also very active in the group.

Kirk said the organization was trying to attain nonprofit status and was currently in the process of devising its bylaws.

Different people involved in drug and alcohol services had distinct views on whether the commission would be solely a source for discussion or eventually attempt to offer services in some way. Most seemed to agree the coalition was a step in the right direction.

Meetings are open to the public and anyone can join the coalition or be involved in meetings, although $20 in annual dues is currently required for a voting membership.

The next meeting will be Tuesday, Nov. 24, from 1–3 p.m. at the Work Connection at 1953 East Main St. in Quincy.