New company to take over some ComCor services

MONTROSE — ComCor Inc. shuttered its Montrose office Thursday, but the Seventh Judicial District still has options.

Another company, Intervention Community Corrections Services, or ICCS, is taking over many of the programs formerly operated locally by ComCor Inc.

The local judiciary received word in February that ComCor Inc. (CCI) would terminate its day-reporting program in Montrose, close its office and stop providing auxiliary services such as private probation oversight, bond-condition supervision and electronic monitoring, and non-residential supervision.

The local community corrections board approached ICCS for contract discussions last month, chief probationer Carrol Warner said, and a contract was recently approved for private probation for lower-risk clients. A contract is already in place for non-residential supervision.

“The rest of it remains to be seen as things develop, but they’re happy to perform the adjunct services ComCor Inc. was performing,” she said.

Other services, such as electronic monitoring and drug-testing, are still up in the air.

There are also kinks to work out — in court Wednesday, public defender Harvey Palefsky said one of his youthful clients on electronic monitoring was being asked to return the equipment to CCI even though he did not know whether ICCS could immediately pick up the slack.

Warner said Friday her probation department would provide electronic monitoring equipment as a temporary stopgap, but she anticipated ICCS opening shop within a few weeks.

“It’s short notice to try and find space. Really the primary task right now is seting it up in a way that (the case manager) can do business and actually see people,” Warner said.

Community corrections is a sentence in lieu of prison, but more stringent than just probation. People sentenced to commcorr must successfully complete a residential phase before they can be transferred to the non-residential program, which includes intensive supervision.

Prior to leaving Montrose, CCI was handling about seven non-residential supervision cases; 13 private probationers and about nine people for bond conditions supervision.

Its day-reporting program was funded by state contract dollars that have since disappeared even though that program was “pretty active,” Warner said. Intervention Community Corrections Services won’t be able to offer day reporting because no more state contracts are available.

But at least the people who depended on CCI’s services won’t be left in the lurch.

“Everybody’s been rather disappointed ComCor was closing because there are valuable services that come out of having an office here,” Warner said.

She said the ICCS contracts would benefit the community and her office. “We don’t anticipate getting any new staff in probation. (Even though) Our numbers continue to rise,” Warner said.

“This is a way to manage those numbers and still keep community safety a priority.”

ICCS has been working with the local community corrections board for the past few years to build a complete commcorr facility in Montrose. Warner said those plans are still in the works.