Source: CVDaily Feed
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State Representative Ed Redd is not only a legislator but also a physician and he sometimes cares for jail inmates with health problems. Dr. Redd says he believes for many of the inmates the real problems they have is alcohol and/or drugs.

“I don’t know what percentage but a lot of them either have a substance abuse disorder problem where they’re addicted to a drug or alcohol problems,” Dr. Redd says, “or they have a mental illness, or both.

“Again, if they’re unemployed and have no income and they get out of jail and you’re not treating their mental illness and you’re not addressing or helping them get help for their substance abuse disorder they are going to come back to jail again.

“That costs the county money. That costs the state money. That costs everybody money when we don’t address the underlying problem.”

Dr. Redd says this is actually what the Justice Reinvestment Initiative passed last year by the legislature is all about.