{"id":3520,"date":"2026-07-14T07:03:24","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:03:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=3520"},"modified":"2026-07-14T07:03:24","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:03:24","slug":"pima-county-jail-recidivism-drops-but-overdose-deaths-reveal-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=3520","title":{"rendered":"Pima County jail recidivism drops, but overdose deaths reveal crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<section>\n<p>TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) &#8211; A new memorandum from Pima County Detainee and Crisis Systems shows only 3% of high-risk inmates enrolled in a county rehabilitation program are returning to jail within a month.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=3519\">Pilot killed in helicopter crash helping to fight Colorado wildfire<\/a><\/p>\n<p>That is down from 27% reported in the 2025 annual report. but new data also shows a significant gap in outcomes once those individuals are released.<\/p>\n<p>Javier Arvizu spent 11 years cycling in and out of jail.<\/p>\n<p>He now works as a rehabilitation manager for Pima County\u2019s Inmate Navigation, Enrollment, Support, and Treatment program, which targets inmates who struggle with mental health and drug use and are most likely to reoffend.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe curriculum we teach here, it teaches us to question ourselves why we act the way we do, so it definitely changed my perspective on life,\u201d Arvizu said.<\/p>\n<p>INVEST Operations Manager Keith Jeffrey said the program focuses on basic needs before employment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat we do at INVEST is we start at the bottom. What are your basic needs? I know you need a job, but if you\u2019re still actively using, how are you going to keep a job?\u201d Jeffrey said.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the drop in recidivism, the data reveal a more complicated picture.<\/p>\n<p>41% of Pima County\u2019s opioid overdose deaths from January 2026 to May 2026 involved people who had been released from jail within the last five years. <\/p>\n<p>Dr. Jeff Alvarez, medical director of the Pima County Jail and Pima County Detainee and Crisis Systems, said more than 75% of those individuals never started treatment while incarcerated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not that they didn\u2019t want treatment, it\u2019s that they just got out so quickly they couldn\u2019t and wouldn\u2019t be able to start the medication right away\u2026or a lot of patients will say, I don\u2019t need it. And so the harder it becomes if they refuse the program,\u201d Alvarez said.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=3517\">Florida man arrested again for posing as nurse after sergeant recognizes him on the news<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Jeffrey said even inmates who do receive treatment return to environments where substance abuse is present.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo get out of jail, and you walk out to the bus stop, and there\u2019s people that have been on the bus all day using substances. You want that person to resist the temptation,\u201d Jeffrey said.<\/p>\n<p>He said reliable transportation directly from the jail to treatment facilities is essential to closing that gap.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSubstance abuse disorder, it doesn\u2019t sleep. It doesn\u2019t take breaks, we\u2019re going to need community agencies that are here 24 hours a day, seven days a week, ready to pick up their participants from the door of that jail and take them to treatment,\u201d Jeffrey said.<\/p>\n<p>Alvarez and DACS Director Paula Perrera plan to present the report\u2019s findings and recommendations to county leadership on Tuesday, July 14.<\/p>\n<p>Are you streaming 13 News?<\/p>\n<p>Watch a free live stream of Tucson Now and 13 News at TucsonNow.Live.<\/p>\n<p>Be sure to download the free Tucson Now app, which you can find on Apple and Google.<\/p>\n<p>If you are using a desktop computer, you can use your mobile device to scan the QR code below.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=3515\">Glendale woman found dead after going out with man she met online, police say<\/a><\/p>\n<p>You can submit your breaking news or weather images here.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pima County is reporting a drop in recidivism, but overdose deaths following release continue to be a problem.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2691,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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