A Progressive Jail Focused on Rehabilitation and Refocusing Lives
As Sheriff, Jose is committed to serving the people in the jail by investing mental health resources, relationships with Arlington County leaders and community organizations, and staff training and development.
Mental health and substance use disorders are heavily present in the current jail population. In 2022, Jose played a lead role in implementing a new Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) program to help safely manage drug withdrawal in the jail. As Sheriff he committed to upgrading oversight and staff accountability to assure appropriate round-the-clock care for those suffering a mental health crisis
He has restored the robust non-profit and volunteer-led programs that were discontinued due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a proven tool for successful re-entry to the community.
Jose has developed strong relationships with the County leadership, rehabilitation-focussed organizations and community leaders. He will continue working closely with these folks and bring community-driven solutions to the ACSO.
Preventing Deaths in the Jail and Keeping Families Connected
He is investing in tools like Biometric Sensors and resources like in-house medical while working to keep inmates connected with friends and family without any fees.
Jose has begun the procurement process of Biometric technology, a tool that will help monitor the health of the inmates and provide early prevention and detection capabilities for medical crises. This technology will add to procedures followed by our 24/7 on-call physicians and nurses to keep our jail healthy and prevent any deaths.
As Sheriff, Jose will eliminate fees charged to an inmate’s family and friends to maintain contact with them, including phone and video calls. Research shows that maintaining connection to family while paying one’s debt to society is an important part of successful re-entry to the community.
He will work on in-housing medical, which will bring in more medical personnel and resources and create better accountability for medical staff.
Investing in Staff
The Sheriff and Sheriff’s Deputies are certified to conduct three functions: serving warrants, maintaining the jail, and providing security at the courthouse. To meet our community’s goals, it’s critical that the Sheriff’s Office employ diverse staff who are well-paid, have reasonable work hours, and access to on-going high quality professional training that embraces Arlington’s values.
Jose is committed to addressing today’s staff shortage—a national phenomena—through efficient and engaged recruitment practices, active advocacy at the state and local level for appropriate pay and benefits, as well as ensuring staff has access to programs that support their mental and physical well-being.
Building Community Through Proactive Engagement
It is the Sheriff’s job to ensure that all levels of the staff in the ACSO are participating in community events, that the people know what the Department’s role is and to reduce the sense of fear and isolation related to the Office.
To improve trust and transparency, Jose will work on creating an online dashboard and newsletter program with real-time information for the public and will update the website.
To work on preventing incarceration and keeping Arlington safe, Jose has built great relationships over the years with organizations like OAR, Path Forward, Doorways and more. He will build on these partnerships to bring community-based solutions.
Jose knows that avoiding that first contact with the criminal legal system ensures that a young person has full access to education or employment opportunities. Jose supports involvement in youth mentorship and youth violence prevention programs—like summer sports leagues.
