Chesterfield Sheriff outlines duties of his department
Posted February 13, 2025 at 3:43 PM, Filed Under: All News, Front Page, MeetingsBy Greg Pearson
Sheriff Karl Leonard explained the changes he has made in the Sheriff’s Office over the past
11 years to put the emphasis on treating mental health problems that most of the 400 inmates
suffer from on a daily basis. Those mental health issues are a direct result of closing down state
and federal mental hospitals back in the 1980s because those would-be patients now have no
where else to go.
According to Leonard, the average recidivism rate for local jails is 70%, but the HARP program implemented in Chesterfield has cut the rate to just 23%. Reducing recidivism cuts the cost of maintaining the jail, which currently runs $48,000 annually for each inmate.
HARP (Helping Addicts Recover Progressively) is a faith-based program initiated in 2016 “using peer-to-peer recovery models and re-entry services, including assistance with obtaining identification, healthcare and job readiness.” Because it has not shown to be effective for inmates who have committed sex crimes and murders, HARP is not used for that jail population. Leonard just returned from Rwanda last month where HARP was recognized for its success as one of three effective programs in the entire world.
Chesterfield’s program focuses on treating trauma created by drug addiction. That treatment includes prescription drugs, which the jail provides free to prisoners at a monthly cost of $25,000. During Covid, Leonard said his prisoners were safer to be in jail than being on the outside because the jail was controlled space. By state law, each prisoner receives a free copy of the daily Richmond Times Dispatch.
Asked about the jail’s working relationship with ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), Leonard said nothing has changed even with a new administration. Chesterfield provides records to ICE frequently including a week before and the day of an immigrant’s release. But ICE doesn’t pick up inmates, and Leonard believes that is because ICE is focused on sanctuary cities.
Leonard served 30 years in the Chesterfield Police Department, rising to the rank of major. Shortly after that retirement, he began another career with the Sheriff’s Office and was appointed sheriff in 2014 and then re-elected in 2019 and 2023. He announced he will be a candidate again in 2027.
Sheriff Leonard has a master’s degree in Criminal Justice from VCU and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. His office also oversees the operation of 17 court rooms at the courthouse facility. The 340 personnel in his office are responsible for 400 prisoners in the local jail and 500 at Riverside Regional Jail.
Leonard was the speaker at the February, 2025 meeting of the Brandermill Region Men’s Club. At the 10am March 6 meeting of the BRMC, State Senator Glen Sturtevant is the featured speaker. Sturtevant will do a wrap up of the 2025 General Assembly at the Brandermill Church. All residents of Brandermill and Woodlake are invited to attend.