| The Office of Communications and External Affairs generates awareness
of the critical role of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department
in the administration of criminal justice in the communities of Suffolk
County. The Office of Communications and External Affairs is committed
to expanding the role of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department
as a steward for enhanced quality of life in the various neighborhoods
of the county through a variety of programs and services such as the
Community Works Program, jail tours, school visits and senior outreach
initiatives.
The Community Works Program (CWP), allows properly classified inmates
to work outside the walls on public works projects that benefit
the county. Generally, the work they perform saves the communities
thousands of dollars each year in labor costs. It also provides
the inmates with a sense of reparations and serves as an important
step in the reintegration process.
The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department offers tours of
the facility in an effort to educate the public about the safe,
secure and efficient operation of one of Massachusetts’ busiest
correctional environments. These tours speak to the challenge of
housing over 3000 pre-trial and sentenced inmates and
provide general information about the facility.
Tours of the facility are also provided through the Jail
Brake program. Jail Brake is offered as a resource to schools,
community groups and various juvenile agencies that work with adolescents.
Jail Brake is a realistic, preventative educational program that
allows adolescents to experience a few hours in jail. This hard-hitting
program exposes any myths that may exist about life while incarcerated,
demonstrating that criminal activity entails very real consequences.
The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department visits schools around
Boston to speak with students about making smart choices. The presentation
is geared towards students in the fifth through ninth grades with
the intent of making young adults aware that they are responsible
for their actions and that their actions have long-lasting consequences.
It is our hope that after speaking with students and providing
them insight into what life in jail is like they will be discouraged
from choosing a life of crime.
The Sheriff's Department mission is to enforce the laws of the
Commonwealth and to serve and protect the citizens of Suffolk County.
Certain segments of the population become targets for unscrupulous
individuals. Seniors are often targets of schemes involving consumer
fraud. The most important weapon you can have in the fight against
crime and fraudulent activity is to be armed with knowledge. Thus,
the Sheriff’s Department provides seniors with a brochure
containing many useful tips to help them recognize the warning
signs of criminal activity.
Another initiative targeting the senior population of Suffolk
County is the Elderly Identification Program.
This program is an innovative approach designed to extend to seniors
of Suffolk County an identification card that can be used as a second form of identification
but also has contact and medical information if an emergency situation arises.
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