Representatives of the Sussex County Community Law Enforcement Addiction Recovery Program, C.L.E.A.R, were invited to a forum at Rider University on Friday, January 6, 2017. The “RED” Forum, which stands for “Raising and Educating Drug Smart Communities” presented by City of Angels and moderated by Chasing News/NJ 101.5 Radio’s host Bill Spadea, provided a way for law enforcement to learn how collaborations with prevention, treatment and recovery professionals, and the medical community can increase opportunities for people with addiction to find recovery.
Allie Hunter McDade, Executive Director, Police Assisted Addiction Recovery Initiative (PAARI), based in Massachusetts, shared that a study conducted by the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that the Gloucester, MA Police Department’s PAARI initiative was far more successful in placing people into detox and addiction recovery programs than hospital-based programs with similar goals. This shatters the perception that law enforcement, long trained to arrest, would be the last to help people with substance use disorders.
Newton Police Chief, Michael Richards and Center for Prevention and Counseling’s Recovery Support Coordinator, Katie Calvacca, spoke on a panel at the forum about the experiences in developing and implementing C.L.E.A.R., Sussex County’s police assisted addiction recovery program. Follow this link to view Chief Richards and Katie Calvacca, speaking at Friday’s panel and click here the other speakers and panelists.
Also attending were Sussex County Prosecutor, Francis Koch and Center for Prevention and Counseling Executive Director, Becky Carlson. The forum was an excellent opportunity to meet with Prosecutors from other counties, clinicians, recovery coaches and law enforcement representing similar programs from as far away as Massachusetts in order to exchange information and learn about ways to improve upon the C.L.E.A.R. Program, here in Sussex County.
The C.L.E.A.R. Program, with full support of the Sussex County Prosecutor’s office and the Police Chiefs’ Association, is working to expand and include every police department in Sussex County. For more information, go to www.clearprogram.org or find @clearprogram on Facebook. Currently, anyone in need of help for addiction can walk in to the Newton Police Department or contact The Center for Prevention and Counseling at (973)383-4787 between the hours of 8am and 5pm M-F or call the C.L.E.A.R. number at 1-844-SC-CLEAR (1-844-722-5327) from 8am until 8pm for assistance.