Empowerment 2008: Essex County Sheriff Frank G. Cousins, Jr.

EMPOWERMENT2008

Law Enforcement
Conference

October 9 & 10, 2008
Sheraton Ferncroft
Danvers MA

Frank G. Cousins, Jr.
Essex County Sheriff

Essex County Sheriff Frank G. Cousins, Jr.

Frank G. Cousins, Jr. was elected to his first six year term as Sheriff of Essex County (MA) in November of 1998. This victory paved the way for the continuation of the progressive philosophy with which he has managed the Sheriffs Department since his appointment by Governor William F. Weld in September 1996.

From the time of his appointment, Sheriff Cousins has made significant changes at the Sheriffs Department. Under his leadership the department has opened 3 offices of community corrections, 2 civil process offices and the counties first ever women's pre release facility. Administratively, Sheriff Cousins completely restructured the management of the department and instituted a line item budget saving thousands of taxpayer dollars. He is responsible for managing the operations of 9 facilities, a staff of 580 employees, a daily inmate population of 2000 and an annual operating budget in excess of $50 million.

Committed to providing inmates with the necessary skills to become productive members of society, Sheriff Cousins has implemented numerous educational and behavioral programs at the correctional facilities. His commitment to the treatment of offenders is highlighted by the establishment of the substance abuse treatment community within the Essex County Correctional Facility, alternative programs for male inmates, the Correctional Alternative Centers work release and community service programs and the Women in Transition Center in Salisbury.

Outside the Department, many have recognized Sheriff Cousins for his skills and dedication to public safety. Under his leadership, the Sheriffs Office has forged positive relationships with many federal, state and local criminal justice agencies. One of most recent benefits of this multi-agency collaboration is the implementation of a web based information sharing network that links all 34 Police Departments in the county to the Essex County Correctional Facility. Sheriff Cousins is a member of Governor Deval Patrick's Anti-Crime Council and Attorney General Martha Coakley's Urban Violence Subcommittee.

His commitment to the treatment of offenders is highlighted by the establishment of the substance abuse treatment community (SATCO) at the Essex County Correctional Facility, the "Essex County Re-Entry Center" and community service programs at the Lawrence Correctional Alternative Center, and numerous drug and alcohol diversion programs at the Women-in-Transition Center in Salisbury.

He plans to further professional accreditation for the Department and open a Regional Lock up. In 2003, the Middleton House of Correction was awarded national accreditation by the American Correctional Association (ACA), an honor earned by less than one percent of correctional facilities nationwide.

Sheriff Cousins attended Northern Essex Community College before transferring to Springfield College, where he received both his BA (Human Services), and his Master's Degree (Criminal Justice).

On a personal note Sheriff Cousins resides in his hometown of Newburyport with his wife Nicole and son Gardner William.

Empowerment
2008
Law Enforcement
Conference