Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Deflection Program topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Clatsop County reports 31 Measure 110-related arrests since recriminalization; deflection program has eight active participants
Summary
County management reported 31 arrests in Clatsop County tracked on the state deflection dashboard since Measure 110 was changed; the county received $453,888 in deflection funding for the biennium and has eight people currently engaged in the voluntary deflection program with four graduates to date.
Monica (county management) briefed the advisory group on the county's Measure 110 deflection program and recently released state dashboard data. She said the statewide change in law (House Bill 4002) recriminalized possession of controlled substances and that Clatsop County has seen renewed arrests since enforcement shifted.
Monica said the county dashboard showed 31 arrests in Clatsop County attributed to the relevant period; she provided a breakdown by agency: Seaside Police Department (12), Clatsop County Sheriff's Office (6), Warrenton Police (5), Oregon State Police (4), Astoria Police (3) and Gearhart (1). She also said only seven of the 31 arrests were for possession-only charges; many arrests included additional allegations such as theft or trespass.
On funding, Monica said the county's deflection allocation for the current biennium is $453,888. She said the county allocated roughly $270,000 for program staffing, supplies and training for community partners and roughly $180,000 to client services including treatment, housing and contingent-engagement supports. She described contingency management as a service to help keep participants engaged and noted CBH provides direct client services and peer supports.
Monica said the county's deflection program began Sept. 1, 2024, and has eligibility criteria that were expanded Feb. 10 to include residents on supervision, people facing nonviolent lower-level charges with no identified victims, active warrants or failure-to-appear charges, and people who request help for addiction even if they were not arrested. She said the program is voluntary; officers perform a warm handoff to CBH when possible and CBH offers after-hours peer coverage for police referrals.
Monica reported eight people are currently engaged in deflection services, one additional person in custody has agreed to participate when released, and four people have graduated from the program; she said the deflection program uses a 90-day engagement window.
Advisory members pressed for more clarity on behavioral-health provider capacity. Several providers said callers report not getting callbacks from CBH; meeting participants urged clearer coordination and contact paths so people seeking help are not left without information. CBH staff in the chat noted they track engagement calls and can supply outreach records for follow-up.
Monica also described a county purchase of TruNarc testing equipment to allow on-site substance testing so officers do not have to wait for lab results. She said that rapid testing helps officers and public health better understand the substances on the street and avoid wrongly charging people when an item proves not to be an illegal drug.
Monica encouraged participants to review the statewide deflection dashboard and said she would share the link with meeting staff for distribution to the advisory group.
