Berkshire Benchmarks Releases State of the County Update

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Benchmarks data team recently released a State of the County Update for 2023. 
 
This brief report builds on the Berkshire Benchmarks State of the County Report published in May 2022 and highlights notable changes in regional indicators over the past year. The berkshirebenchmarks.org website has also been updated to reflect the most current available data. 
 
The purpose of the Benchmarks initiative and report is to highlight the region's successes and challenges.
 
The 2022 Berkshire Benchmarks State of the County report provided a comprehensive overview of our region's performance across eight sectors: Economy, Education, Environment, Government, Health, Housing, Social Environment, and Transportation.  
 
In the future, the Berkshire Benchmarks team will continue to monitor these and other indicators to aid with the regional understanding of changes in these sectors and whether the work happening throughout the region is having the intended impact. 
 
Berkshire Benchmarks is a collaborative initiative managed through Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC). Our sources are publicly available data, including the U.S. Census Bureau, the American Community Survey, various Massachusetts data sets, and periodic surveys of Berkshire County residents. 
 
Berkshire Benchmarks aims to work with the community to understand priorities and help inform the region on how we are doing and if we are improving. Berkshire Benchmarks enhances the region's access to quality data and analysis. 

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DA Shugrue: One Kilo of Heroin, Guns Removed from Pittsfield Streets

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Local law enforcement agencies seized almost a kilo of heroin, along with guns and other substances, during raids in October. 

On Thursday, Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said this interrupted a "large-scale" drug trafficking operation. In total, about 542 grams of cocaine and 1,083 grams of heroin, firearms, and other paraphernalia were seized.

Nine people, including a juvenile, were charged with drug trafficking and/or illegal firearms.

"We're catching drugs and not a lot of cash, so it's not sold. That means that we're getting the drugs before it's sold. Here, almost a full kilo. That tells me it's not in the streets. I see a direct correlation with that. During those months, I'll see the overdose deaths go down, and that's significant to me," he said in a press conference at the Berkshire DA's office. 

"But we have to keep fighting it because we have to deal with the addiction issue as well, which we're dealing with in a different light, but we have to get rid of the supply that's coming in, and we see that supply go down. I know that you've got $250,000 worth of heroin that's not on the streets today, and I'm happy with that."

After a lengthy investigation, search warrants were executed on Oct. 15 and Oct. 22. 

During the Oct. 15 operation, 542 grams of cocaine (with a street value of $54,000) and 83 grams of heroin (with a street value of $20,000) were seized. 

Police also confiscated three guns: a 9 mm handgun with nine rounds, a Glock 19, a .45 caliber semi-automatic handgun with six rounds, four loose rounds of ammunition, a 10-round feeding device, two boxes of 9mm ammunition, and a rifle scope. 

Seven individuals were arrested on charges of drug trafficking and possession of illegal firearms. 

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