HUNTINGTON - The city of Huntington is receiving federal funds for a new women's drug court program on the heels of the Huntington Mayor's Office of Drug Control Policy laying out such a move as part of its strategy for fighting addiction in the region.
More than $140,000 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been awarded to establish a Women's Empowerment and Addiction Recovery (WEAR) program, which will increase the Cabell County Drug Court's capacity from 40 to 60.
Drug court is a program that takes low-level offenders and puts them through rigorous treatment and monitoring to get them off drugs rather than placing such offenders in overcrowded jails. It lowers incarceration costs and has a track record of producing individuals who are less likely to reoffend after completion of the program.
The WEAR program proposed by the Office of Drug Control Policy would specialize in helping women who have engaged in prostitution to support a drug habit, offering additional mental and physical health care, counseling and therapy to get them out of the sex trade.
The funding was announced by U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., on Tuesday.
"The number of sex-trafficking victims who are dealing with drug abuse and addiction and who are being exploited and forced into modern-day slavery continues to grow day after day," Manchin said in a written release. "We should be doing everything we can to help these victims move forward on a drug-free path with opportunities for a better future."
Manchin praised the efforts of Huntington city officials in attacking the drug problem on the fronts of addiction and recovery as well as law enforcement.
Capito offered similar thoughts.
"I am glad that this funding will enable the City of Huntington to launch the Women's Empowerment Addiction Recovery Program, the first program of its kind in West Virginia to address the needs of women who are struggling with both drug addiction and prostitution," she said in a written statement. "By diverting these women to mental and physical health treatment programs instead of the criminal justice system, this program can help return them to healthy and productive members of society, and make an impact in the broader battle against West Virginia's drug crisis.”