Virginia AG discusses law enforcement partnerships and initiatives among SWVA agencies
Miyares was joined by Bristol, Virginia Police Chief Byron Ashbrook, Sheriff Tyrone Foster and Del. Israel O'Quinn.
There was a heavy focus on the TRIAD program, a partnership between law enforcement, seniors, and senior organizations aimed at combating crime specifically targeting that group. Those at the press conference say scammers are becoming more advanced, so they want to make seniors aware of what could happen. And they say that loneliness is another epidemic among them.
'TRIAD is the definition of a partnership. It's about bringing law enforcement, senior citizens, and volunteers working together to help our aging population,' Miyares said. 'They're both getting information of what's happening in their community, tips from law enforcement as well as how to protect themselves but they're also doing something invaluable from a mental health standpoint, which is connecting seniors with other seniors and building friendships as a result.'
Miyares says one in five Virginians are over the age of 65. In Southwest Virginia, they make up 22% of the population. He also called the partnership here a model for the rest of the Commonwealth.
'Seniors are often very engaged in their communities. They have something that a lot of us don't necessarily have that's very valuable and that's time,' Del. O'Quinn said. 'So they can pitch in and make this program better and bigger and more valuable for their friends and neighbors.'
Starting July 1, the Bristol, Virginia Police Department will have a detective dedicated to crimes against children and the elderly.
'We are pulling one of the units from patrol. We are fully staffed now so one of those units will be going to the [Criminal Investigations Division] to help streamline this process in both elder abuse cases and child victims of crime cases,' Chief Ashbrook said. 'It's really important to have that continuity of care so child victims aren't seeing multiple different detectives because they go through a process if they've been a victim of crime or even a witness of crime through our children's advocacy center and through the court system and having one officer, one detective to be able to handle all that is important.'
Another vulnerable population they want to focus on is those suffering mental health crises. BVPD has a co-response with the Community Support Program through the Department of Social Services.
'I'm not a mental health clinician, I'm not a doctor, but if I can keep the clinician safe and I can get the clinician to the scene, and they can do their work then it's the right response for the right type of call and it can help de-escalate situations,' Ashbrook said. 'We've seen it work in the past.'
The Bristol, Virginia Sheriff's Office already has several initiatives in place to help keep children and seniors safe, including the D.A.R.E. drug awareness program, providing child identification kits, Project Lifesaver (a rapid response program for those who wander away from their caregivers), the One Pill Can Kill program, and Drug Take Back days.
Sheriff Tyrone Foster says his office has provided Highlands Community Services with a deputy for the Crisis Intervention Team Assessment Center along with a location for the Mount Rogers Health District's Mobile Integrative Health Service Unit, which focuses on behavioral and mental health services.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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