Law enforcement responders transport and transfer custody of the person with a mental illness in a safe and sensitive manner that supports the individual’s efficient access to mental health services and the officers’ timely return to duty.
Law enforcement is authorized to provide transportation for people who are under arrest or who they believe meet the criteria for emergency evaluation (whether the evaluation is voluntary or involuntary). These individuals are in law enforcement custody, and rules and regulations regarding restraints in custodial situations apply.13 Given the frequent history of traumatic experiences among people with mental illnesses, custodial restraints may create acute stress, which in turn may escalate their degree of agitation. Law enforcement executives, with input from other program planners, should review policies regarding restraints in custodial situations and balance considerations of officer and citizen safety with the impact of these controls on people with mental illnesses.
The planning committee should identify facilities that are capable of assuming custodial responsibility, are available at all times, and have personnel qualified to conduct a mental health evaluation.14 Speedy custodial transfer is critical to the overall success of law enforcement responses. To enable officers to return quickly to their duties, staff in the receiving facility should efficiently and accurately obtain relevant law enforcement information. Protocols should ensure that medical clearance is achieved in a timely manner and that people brought by law enforcement are never turned away. If law enforcement responders determine that the person with a mental illness should be arrested and officers take the person to jail or lockup, then qualified staff should be available to screen the arrestee at intake for mental health status, medication needs, and suicide risk.
In noncustodial situations in which the person does not meet the criteria for emergency evaluation and is not under arrest—but officers determine he or she would benefit from services and support—officers should try to connect the individual with a friend or family member, peer support group, or treatment crisis center. Similarly, officers should seek to engage the services of the individual’s current mental health provider or a mobile crisis team. In some jurisdictions, law enforcement may also collaborate with mental health professionals to help transport individuals to evaluation or treatment facilities.
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13. Law enforcement agencies generally define custody using a case law standard that can be described as whether or not a “reasonable person” would feel free to leave. 14. H. Steadman and colleagues have used the term “specialized crisis response site” (SCRS) to refer to such a facility. SCRSs are defined as “sites where officers can drop off individuals in psychiatric crisis and return to their regular patrol duties. These [prebooking diversion] programs identify detainees with mental disorders and work with diversion staff, community-based providers, and the courts to produce a mental health disposition in lieu of jail.” They also can link individuals to substance abuse and other treatment. See H. Steadman, K. Stainbrook, P. Griffin, J. Draine, R. Dupont, and C. Horey, “A Specialized Crisis Response Site as a Core Element of Police-Based Diversion Programs,” Psychiatric Services 52 (2001): 219–222. |