As two advocates from different corners of Kentucky, we come together with a shared mission born from our personal struggles with addiction and incarceration. We are Britney Allen Jones and John Bowman, and we are both in long-term recovery. With September being Recovery Month, we reflect on our journeys and remember those who are no longer with us, strengthening our resolve to fight for a system that prioritizes recovery over punishment.
Our stories, though different, are united by the common thread of substance use disorder (SUD) and a broken criminal justice system. We've seen firsthand the devastating toll these issues can take on individuals, families, and communities.
For me, Britney, the loss is deeply personal. My brother, Chad Lake Raymond, died at just 31 years old from complications related to substance use while incarcerated. His pleas for help were ignored, and by the time prison staff intervened, it was too late. Chad's death was preventable – he could have been saved with compassion, medical attention, and understanding. Instead, he was met with cold indifference. His story is a stark reminder of how our government has failed to put people-first policies at the center of this medical crisis.
My journey, John, spans 24 years of cycling in and out of jail, trapped in a system that treated my substance use as a criminal issue rather than a medical one. It took decades before anyone looked at my history and realized I needed help—not incarceration. Today, I use my experience to advocate for change through Dream.Org's Public Health is Public Safety campaign.
The statistics are grim. In Kentucky, 1,984 people died from overdoses in 2023, with 79% of those deaths due to fentanyl. Our state's imprisonment rate of 889 per 100,000 people is higher than the U.S. average and any NATO founding country. We still treat drug possession as a felony offense, while many states only treat it as a misdemeanor.
We've seen how prisons are overcrowded and under-resourced, how the stigma of addiction dehumanizes those who suffer, and how the cycle of punishment perpetuates the crisis. But it doesn't need to continue this way.
That's why we're working together on the Public Health is Public Safety campaign to transform Kentucky's approach to addiction. We know from our lived experience that incarcerating people with SUD does not help them heal or recover. In fact, it increases the likelihood of overdose upon release.
We're calling on leaders to change course. Kentucky needs alternative policies that center on resources, harm reduction, deflection, and treatment. Our Commonwealth needs a system that treats people with substance use disorder as individuals in need of care, not criminals deserving of punishment.
Change won't come easily, but we believe it's possible. We envision a future where people like Chad don't die behind bars, and where more people have a path to recovery like we did.
From Kentucky's East and West, we stand united in our hope that through advocacy, compassion, and common sense, we can ensure more people get the chance to recover. Join us in this fight. Together, we can make Kentucky a state where public health truly means public safety.
Britney Allen Jones is the founder of The Chad Lake Foundation and a person in long-term recovery in Ohio County, KY. John Bowman is the Kentucky Senior Campaign Organizer at Dream.Org and a person in long-term recovery in Lawrence Co., KY. They are both leading advocates in the Public Health is Public Safety campaign.
