By Ella Lipton and Quinn Hogan
SAN BERNARDINO, CA – Advocates across San Bernardino are calling for change after the county Sheriff’s Department announced the surprise shutdown of Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center in August – it is the county’s only facility and is “dedicated to inmates requiring specialized care for addiction, mental health, and other sensitive needs,” according to The Investigative Eye.
“The (Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center) provides a range of programs, including Substance Abuse counseling, Culinary Arts, Parenting classes, and Microsoft training, available to both male and female inmates. The facility is staffed with round-the-clock medical personnel, a mental health clinician, and a chaplain, offering a comprehensive support system for its residents,” reports The Investigative Eye.
According to the report, “community leaders and advocates argue that moving inmates from Glen Helen during their rehabilitation process is not only irresponsible but also risks reintroducing them to the very issues they are trying to overcome, such as drugs, gang involvement, and violence.”
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department announced inmates at the Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center will be relocated to West Valley Detention Center, a prison “notorious for its high levels of violence and drug-related issues, raising concerns about the safety and rehabilitation prospects of inmates accustomed to Glen Helen’s supportive environment,” notes the journal.
The Investigative Eye said it acknowledges that many community members question why Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center was closed at all, adding the center was recently refurbished taking “significant measures to expand its capacity and enhance the comfort of its inmates…installing a new air conditioning system… reintroduc(ing) additional programs” last seen before Covid.
The press release reports that “the decision to relocate inmates coincides with a series of troubling incidents within the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department” referring to four specific instances of criminality ranging from November 2023 to July 2024.
In one such instance, former deputy Samuel Espinoza was arrested and charged with felony drug possession after attempting to bring drugs into West Valley Detention Center, wrote the Eye.
The Investigative Eye adds the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department’s history and abrupt closure of the Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center leaves the community littered with questions about which the Sheriff’s office has yet to provide a timeline or detailed rationale.
