Farmington pilot sends repeat alcohol offenders to inpatient treatment

Farmington will start sending up to five repeat alcohol-related offenders to a 28-day inpatient treatment facility on Aug. 1 if they do not begin the city’s voluntary Joint Intervention Program. The plan puts a short residential stay in front of long-term care, with the inpatient step aimed at people who do not take the first outpatient step.

The facility sits inside the San Juan County Alternative Sentencing complex at 1006 N. Municipal Dr. in Farmington, tying the city’s pilot to the county’s broader alternative sentencing system rather than a standalone clinic. San Juan County's Alternative Sentencing Division operates two jail-based treatment programs and one court compliance program, works out of three Farmington locations, and employs more than 50 people. Its mission is to provide credible sentencing options and “viable opportunities for offender success.”

The city’s Joint Intervention Program, which Totah Behavioral Health runs, lasts one year. The program includes six months of treatment and six months of optional aftercare, and is meant for people who have failed other treatment programs and are among the community’s most frequent users of services. Many of those participants deal with long-term homelessness, addiction and mental health issues.

In May 2019, the county released the results of a six-month behavioral-health gap analysis that identified service gaps in five main areas and led commissioners to push for better coordination. That work later helped shape the county’s Navigation Center, which was created to help residents access housing, basic needs, emotional, mental and behavioral health services.

The same 1006 North Municipal Drive address also became the focus of a security concern on July 5, 2026, when Mataius Oros became the first escapee in the 31-year history of the jail-based DWI treatment center there. Oros escaped during church services after asking to use the restroom.