A new reentry program is opening in Mecklenburg County to support people recovering from substance use after incarceration.
The "Sheriff’s House" will serve as a substance use recovery home supporting men who are leaving the county’s detention center. The sheriff's office says residents will receive wraparound services to help them stay sober and transition back to the community. In a video posted to social media, Sheriff Gary McFadden showed off the home.
“This is something that most people don’t come to. Being released, having a place to come with food. We also provided them with towels, blankets, sheets, and pillow cases,” McFadden said. "Because we want to give them the feel of that this is actually their home and they're coming home to something better than the past.”
McFadden said several formerly incarcerated people were also paid to help renovate the house. “So how terrific that is for people who are coming out of incarceration, coming to a house that was upgraded by the hands of people who were previously incarcerated,” McFadden said.
In the social media video, McFadden declined to give the home's address, citing the federal health privacy law known as HIPAA. However, HIPAA generally applies to the protection of individuals' medical information and does not typically restrict the release of a facility's location.
Last year, the sheriff's office launched a separate program giving inmates the opportunity to record music while in the detention center.
