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The Rumford Police Department is the host law enforcement agency for Oxford County in a state initiative to combat substance use through mobile response teams. From left are team members officer Ashley Rich of the Police Department, Glenn Gordon of Oxford County Mental Health Services and police Sgt. Tracey Higley.
Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times
RUMFORD A yearlong pilot program to prevent drug overdoses statewide during the COVID-19 pandemic is providing glimmers of hope, according to members of a local intervention team.
Gov. Janet Mills initiated Overdose Prevention Through Intensive Outreach, Naloxone and Safety, or OPTIONS for short, last year. The Rumford Police Department was selected as the host law enforcement agency because the River Valley accounts for a significant number of the overdoses in the Oxford County.
Maine police union group to start legal defense fund for officers
It s partly in response to the killing of George Floyd in May at the hands of Minneapolis police, as well as the widespread social uprisings and scrutiny of police conduct that followed.
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A statewide police association plans to start raising more than $100,000 a year to help defend Maine officers who may be charged with crimes or sued for conduct on duty, a response to high-profile shootings in other states that led to charges against police.
Dubbed the Sentinel Program, the new legal protections provided by the Maine Association of Police started Oct. 1 for its nearly 1,000 member officers. To pay for the services, the group will increase weekly dues starting in January from $9 to $12, with $1 of the added cost going toward administration.