Lowell Sun

Below is an excerpt from a June 22 article published by the Lowell Sun.

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Lawyers for the commonwealth are pushing for a loophole in one of Gov. Charlie Baker’s marquee opioid-legislation reforms, according to civil-liberties groups that are suing the state.

For more than 30 years, public officials and advocates had sought to end the practice — known as Section 35 civil commitment — of sending women addicted to drugs, who have not been charged with a crime, to the prison at MCI Framingham when the primary Section 35 facility for women is full.

After lobbying the Legislature for the reform, Gov. Baker signed a law in January that removed MCI Framingham as the designated overflow facility. But earlier this month, a lawyer for the commonwealth argued in U.S. District Court that the law still allows civilly committed women to be sent to MCI Framingham if the Department of Public Health or Department of Mental Health approve it.

Read more at the Lowell Sun.