Female inmates at the Bristol County House of Correction in Dartmouth are now being housed in a center outfitted with split-unit air conditioning.
Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux says when he first took office in 2023, one of the first requests from correctional officers was to install air conditioning in inmate housing units. He used $30,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money to pay for the installation, which will benefit employees and inmates.
Inmates in the women’s center say making the unit more comfortable for all lowers the stress levels of inmates and staff.
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Correctional officer Kevin Botelho spends his workweek in one of the general housing units at the jail, which lacks air conditioning. He recently worked an overtime shift in the women’s center and says the installation of air conditioning makes the work environment safer for all.
Sheriff Heroux says roughly 10 of the 22 housing units at the jail have air conditioning, with the remaining units slated to be added in the next year, paid for, in effect, by the inmates themselves.
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