To the editor:

The Sheriff’s Department reports that trained dogs are assisting in Covid detection activities outside the Bristol County Correctional facilities, specifically in some schools. While one can argue the merits of such an endeavor the fact remains that the primary responsibility of Sheriff Hodgson is the superintendency  of those incarcerated in the Bristol Correctional facilities. 

During the same time frame it was reported last month that another suicide occurred at the Bristol County jail.

Additionally it has been reported by family members of those incarcerated at the Ash Street jail that last week there was a significant plumbing problem that caused raw sewage to leak down the walls of the facility.  More importantly that the plumbing failures had been brewing for a long time and that the flushing of the toilet in one cell frequently produces feces from another cell.

From a health, humanitarian and constitutional perspective this is an outrage and further indication that while Sheriff Hodgson extracts a significant salary and other perks from taxpayers he continuously concentrates his energy and resources on garnering personal media attention.

It is essential that Hodgson cease seeking publicity for himself and the issues completely unrelated to his role as sheriff and focus his attention on the shuttering of the Ash Street jail. Ignoring this problem as he has done historically would be an additional violation of his oath of office.

Betty Ussach,

Dartmouth