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Commission approves pilot to expand jail-based treatment for some non-DWI municipal defendants
Summary
The county approved an MOU with the City of Farmington to allow a limited number (capped at five) of non-DWI municipal defendants to be referred into a secure, 28-day jail-based treatment program when outpatient court-ordered JIP treatment fails; the city will pay per-completer and prorated daily rates for non-completers.
San Juan County commissioners approved a memorandum of understanding with the City of Farmington that extends the county's existing 28-day jail-based treatment program to a small, carefully screened number of non-DWI municipal defendants who fail to complete outpatient Joint Intervention Program (JIP) treatment.
Jennifer Mitchell (S21), who presented the MOU, said the alternative sentencing division will retain full discretion over eligibility and admission, that DWI-sentenced participants will retain priority for admission, and that the number of non-DWI participants in secure beds will be capped at five at any time. The City of Farmington would compensate the county $3,916 per individual who completes the program, or a prorated daily rate of $139.86 for those who do not complete it.
Commissioners asked about judge participation and tracking metrics. Mitchell said municipal court judges (including the full-time municipal court judge, Robert Miller) have been involved in planning and that staff will track completion, recidivism and related success metrics using an existing database structure. The MOU allows either party to terminate the agreement for convenience with 30 days' written notice; staff said outcomes will be monitored during the pilot to inform any expansion.
A commissioner moved to approve the MOU; the motion was seconded and the commission adopted the measure by voice vote.
