Thomas St. John called the Monroe County Jail home after being locked up for crimes related to his drug addiction.

Bullied as a child and into his teens, St. John, known as T.J., turned to drugs. Efforts to get clean failed, and he became homeless, and lost his father to cancer. These events led T.J down the path to addiction.  

"Eventually I ended up here in Monroe County Jail... and I’m extremely grateful to have ended up here," he said.

That’s because T.J. became part of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Medication Assisted Treatment Program, commonly called MAT. But, the highly successful program is not able to reach as many addicts released under the recent bail reform law, causing some concern.

Currently there are about 125 people who are a part of the MAT program, and many are already on the outside. But this number is down since the bail reform law took effect.

Fewer people will have access to MAT because of released inmates under the law.

"You see people that are kind of rough when they first come in and under the influence of their last use," said Dr. Tisha Smith, who is the director of the program. 

The program allows inmates struggling with addiction to have access to FDA-approved medications, counseling, and behavioral therapy.

"To watch somebody go from that point to a point where they are calm, focused, motivated for recovery, ready to get educated and ready to participate in their discharge planning, it’s like night and day," said Smith.

T.J. said he's a different person since the time of his arrest.

"We are so good at beating ourselves up…you know as addicts, you know that’s what we do. I know for me at least I hated myself. I hated the person that I was becoming," he said.

T.J. transitioned out of jail to a halfway house and then was assisted in finding an apartment, all while receiving counseling and prescribed medication. 

"They’re in the right spot …  they’re safe, so they’re in the best place that they could be, getting the best care that they could get," said T.J., speaking about the inmates that remain incarcerated.

Smith is focusing on those who are still able to utilize the program, and success stories like T.J.

For the former inmate, clean for more than a year now, he says he is forever thankful to the MAT program and its leader, Dr. Smith.

"She’s been a guide, like a light, like an angel almost in my recovery," said T.J.

T.J. plans to pay it forward by helping others struggling with addiction, calling himself an advocate for recovery.