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Isanti County OKs $23,600 opioid‑investigation software contract and ongoing behavioral‑health funding
Summary
The county board approved a $23,600 contract to buy Cellebrite Premium for postmortem digital investigations using opioid settlement funds, and authorized a contract with Lighthouse Child and Family Services to provide community behavioral‑health services paid from the Moose Lake grant; both votes were unanimous.
Isanti County commissioners on July 1 approved two Health and Human Services contracts: a $23,600 purchase of Cellebrite Premium software to support postmortem digital investigations for opioid‑related deaths, and a continuing contract with Lighthouse Child and Family Services to provide limited community behavioral‑health services paid from a Moose Lake grant.
Jody Doney, health and human services division leader, told the board the Cellebrite software would be used by investigators “to conduct comprehensive postmortem digital investigations of suspected opioid or illicit substance related deaths, specifically.” She said the software purchase would be funded through opioid settlement funds from the 2025 request‑for‑proposal process.
“The intent behind funding this particular project is, to hopefully reduce the flow of opioids into Isanti County, and also to, you know, essentially stop that distribution, and prevent opioid related overdoses,” Doney said.
The board voted to approve the resolution and contract for Cellebrite Premium. Motion to approve was made by Commissioner Christiansen and seconded by Commissioner Westerberg; commissioners voted “aye” and the motion carried unanimously.
Doney also presented a contract with Lighthouse Child and Family Services. Lighthouse provides community support program services and individual and group mental‑health care under prior authorization. Doney said the Lighthouse contract covers “up to 6 hours per month per referred individual” for underinsured or uninsured county residents, with services paid from the Moose Lake grant the county receives after state hospital closures.
Doney said the contract is fully budgeted for 2025 and runs through December 2025. She told the board that the program serves a “not a great deal” of individuals and that the county has been able to operate for months without the contract but approved it to cover potential current needs.
Commissioner Christiansen moved to approve the Lighthouse contract; Commissioner LaRoe seconded. Commissioners voted “aye” and the motion carried.
Discussion: Commissioners asked about the intended investigative and prevention goals for the Cellebrite purchase and about the anticipated caseload and funding source for Lighthouse services. Doney answered that the Cellebrite work is intended to support investigations that can identify suppliers and distribution networks, and that Lighthouse services will be prior‑authorized case by case.
No legal or statutory citations were presented during the discussion. Both contracts were described as funded from identified grant sources (opioid settlement funds and the Moose Lake grant) and as included in the county’s 2025 budgeting where specified.
