Nov. 16—CONNEAUT — The city’s Municipal Court has received a $30,000 grant from the OneOhio Recovery Foundation to fund the Conneaut Renewal Court, it was announced Wednesday.
The grant lasts three years beginning January 1, with annual payments of $10,000.
Conneaut Municipal Court Judge Nicholas Iarocci said the Renewal Court is one of three substance abuse and mental illness courts in Ohio.
“We take in people suffering from substance abuse and/or mental health disorders,” he said.
Iarocci said Renewal Court is another option for people who have been charged and convicted of a crime.
“It requires long-term rehabilitation and intensive supervision,” he said. ‘That’s what Renewal Court does. It’s not like someone on probation.”
Iarocci said he meets with participants in court every week and rewards and punishes behavior.
“I had to yell at a few of them,” he said. “They showed bad behavior, and then they are sanctioned. One man was jailed for two days.”
In addition to punishments, participants are rewarded with incentives. Iarocci said the incentives include items for participants or praise in court.
“It’s a very important part of the program to be able to encourage people,” he said. “If they are incentivized for good behavior and given rewards, they will continue.”
The grant money will help purchase items for participants such as toiletries, personal hygiene items, laundry detergent, snacks, coffee mugs and school supplies.
Iarocci said the stimulus funding mostly comes from the Ashtabula County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board and donations.
“When we applied for the grant, we thought, ‘Wow, this is a first, we’re not even sure if they’re going to give us this,’” he said. “They did that, and we’re very happy that they did that.”
Iarocci said he has never heard of stimulus payments.
The grant is part of the foundation’s $51 million to combat the opioid crisis.
Funding for the grant comes from 55% of Ohio’s settlement funds with the pharmaceutical industry over the opioid crisis.
Iarocci said he saw the local impact of the opioid crisis when he was a prosecutor in Ashtabula County from 2013 to 2019.
“The impact of the opioid crisis is still ongoing and it has been dramatic, especially for a small country like ours,” he said.
Iarocci said the crisis has limited the province’s resources and has also claimed lives.
“The Ashtabula County Commissioners, with whom I have worked closely, have retained a private law firm to file their own lawsuit against the pharmaceutical companies and others responsible for the opioid crisis,” he said.
Iarocci saw the lawsuit as part of the broader state lawsuit, the settlement money from which will go toward the grant.
Iarocci said starting Renewal Court was his goal when he was elected judge in 2019, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed its start.
“We launched in 2023,” he said. “It has been a very busy two years with the program.”
Iarocci said Renewal Court has already seen two graduation ceremonies.
