Grant Funds New Jail Diversion Program For Westborough

WESTBOROUGH, MA—New grant money procured by the Westborough Police Department is bringing the Mental Health Jail Diversion Program to Westborough, Southborough and Northborough's departments.

Police partnering with Advocates, which will provide a clinician to work with officers assisting those in crisis. Training will also be provided to personnel to help police deescalate volatile situations.

Called "The Boro Jail Diversion Program," the initiative is in its infancy, the goal which is to proactively help those in crisis. Training and coordinating have just begun and the departments hope to have the program running by Jan. 1.

"We are training/implementing the program over the next two months," said Westborough Chief Jeff Lourie. "The goal is to have the initiative in place and on the street by Jan. 1, 2019."

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