Since being elected in 2016, Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi has focused on reducing the number of inmates returning to prison through drug treatment programs and inmate job placement. His newest program, dubbed Operation Freedom Pups, gives a select group of inmates the chance to give back to those that may need their help the most—shelter dogs. In partnership with Second Chance Animal Services, the residents at the Sheriff’s Minimum Security Pre-Release Center foster and train the dogs to ready them for adoption. As Connecting Point’s Ross Lippman shows us, Operation Freedom Pups is a second chance for both the inmates and their four-legged friends.
This story originally aired on October 1, 2019.
