Brien Center Receives Funding for Drunk Driving Victims

The Massachusetts Office for Victim Assistance recently awarded funding to the Brien Center in Pittsfield to increase services available to victims of drunk driving crashes in Berkshire County.

Each year, MOVA awards funding to agencies that provide free services such as counselling, crisis intervention, case management and advocacy to victims, witnesses and families impacted by OUI incidents. The funding comes from the Drunk Driving Trust Fund (DDTF) which collects fines imposed by the courts on offenders convicted of operating under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

“The Brien Center has a long history of working closely with the District Attorney’s office, providing services to victims and their families in Berkshire County,” said M. Christine Macbeth, chief executive officer of the Brien Center. “District Attorney David Capeless has indicated how significant and debilitating the impact of these OUI crimes are on the people involved, their families and the community. Starting in 2015, the Brien Center will have the resources to dispatch trained DDTF staff to respond to requests from the District Attorney’s office to meet victims in the aftermath of an OUI crash, explain resources and to schedule services. The range of services will include free individual and group therapy as well as clinical case management.”

“Crashes caused by impaired drivers leave devastating physical and emotional effects on victims and their families”, said Liam Lowney, MOVA’s Executive Director. “While awareness and prevention campaigns are more commonplace during the holiday season, survivors of these senseless acts require specialized services to assist in their recovery every day. We are thrilled to fund the Brien Center’s work to help those impacted by these traumatic events.”

The Brien Center DDTF program will operate out of their three outpatient clinics in Pittsfield, North Adams and Great Barrington. To learn more about or to access services, call 413-449-0412 or visit www.briencenter.org.

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