The Butler County Prison as seen on Tuesday, March 19. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle

Officials at the highest level of county government are charged with making decisions that impact the lives of hundreds of inmates and employees of the county prison.

Monitoring the mandated medication assisted treatment (MAT) program, which provides medication to treat inmates with substance abuse problems, and buying the latest equipment to help keep illegal drugs out of the prison are some of the current issues the Butler County Prison Board is addressing.

“In the past eight years, the Butler County Prison Board has taken action to make investments to provide the tools and resources needed to keep our staff and those who oversee and work to address those incarcerated, safely equipped to carry out their jobs,” Butler County Commissioner Kim Geyer said.

State law calls for fourth class counties such as Butler County to have a “board of inspectors of the jail or county prison,” also known as a prison board.

The board shall consist of the president judge or a judge designated by the president judge, district attorney, sheriff, controller and the county commissioners, according to Title 61 of Pennsylvania’s consolidated statutes.

Common Pleas Court Judge Joseph Kubit, District Attorney Rich Goldinger, Sheriff Mike Slupe, Controller Ben Holland, and Commissioners Geyer, Leslie Osche and Kevin Boozel comprise the board in Butler County. Slupe serves as chairman.

Selecting a person to be in charge of 130 corrections officers and other employees who carry out the protocols to secure, feed and care for as many as 512 inmates is among the most important decisions the board has to make.

Last fall, the board made the call to promote from within to hire 26-year prison veteran Beau Sneddon as warden to replace Joe DeMore, who resigned to become the director of corrections for Volusia County, Florida after serving as warden since 2015.

Sneddon, who served as deputy warden under DeMore, has been tasked with continuing to administer the state-mandated MAT program.

Hiring Sneddon made for a smooth transition in leadership, said Goldinger, the longest serving member of the board.

“Obviously, hiring Warden Beau Sneddon to replace Joe DeMore allowed for a smooth transition from one warden to another, which was made all the smoother since they both shared the same visions for how to run the prison.

“Both wardens should also be applauded for how they have handled the statewide requirement of medically assisted treatment,” Goldinger said.

The board makes recommendations and votes on matters of business, some of those which require a vote or ratification by the commissioners.

The prison board has made investments into technology updates, scanners, equipment and tools, as well as investments into medical providers and professional medical staff and services to support addiction recovery programs at the prison, Geyer said.

In addition, the prison board has allocated funds for the mandated MAT program in the prison. The board has approved a one-year renewable contract with the Ellen O’Brien Gaiser Center to provide medication management and counseling services to inmates with addictions as they prepare for a healthy reentry to society, Geyer said.

These ongoing investments and collaborative efforts with countywide entities, such as Glade Run Lutheran Services, provide case management services to connect inmates to support services upon release from prison, she said.

“We support ongoing efforts in the prison to address the addiction recovery of the inmates,” Slupe said.

The Butler County Prison as seen on Tuesday, March 19. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle