Mannion secures funding for new Onondaga County Sheriff's Department mental health program

The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Department will soon have a full-time health and wellness program to provide comprehensive mental health services to law enforcement and crime victims.

Onondaga County Sheriff Toby Shelley said the program is inspired by a similar wellness initiative in the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department. His department just needed the money to initiate it. State Senator John Mannion came through with the $100,000 cost of the program, out of the state budget.

"It's about building resilience, fostering well-being, and ensuring that no one falls through the cracks," Mannion said. "With this funding, we're sending a clear message that everyone's mental health matters. We see you, we appreciate you, and we stand with you.”

Shelley said a full-time mental health professional will offer help to any law enforcement professional in Onondaga County, including town and village police officers, and officers in the Syracuse Police Department.

"Cops will not show weakness, but we have weak spots, weak spots in our hearts," Shelley said. "So we need to help those weak spots and those people's hearts."

(source:  WRVO | By Ellen Abbott)