Guernsey County is now part of The Stepping-Up Initiative

Retired Ohio Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Stratton is shown speaking to a number of area elected officials and representatives from Guernsey County’s mental illness and chemical addiction agencies during a meeting Wednesday (Jan. 24) in the County Administration Building’s Main Floor Conference Room.  County Commissioners Skip Gardner, Dave Saft and Dave Wilson were among the elected officials in attendance along with Guernsey County Sheriff Jeff Paden, Cambridge Municipal Court Judge John Mark Nicholson and Guernsey County Juvenile/Probate Judge David Bennett.  Justice Stratton updated the group on the various aspects of “The Stepping Up Initiative”, whose role is to assist participating counties in better serving the needs of mentally ill individuals who keep revolving in and out of local correctional facilities.  The collaborative effort is designed to make maximum use of already-available resources, resulting in better services to those who need it and, typically, substantial savings to the taxpayer.  The event was sponsored by the Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation.