HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016 02-12 Local Police Training For Encounters With People With Mental Illness WCCO 2/16/2016 Local Police Training For Encounters With People With Mental Illness«WCCO I CBS Minnesota
Local Police Training For Encounters With People
With Mental Illness
February 12,2016 6:53 PM By John Lauritsen
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MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — It is estimated that about 10 percent of police
calls involve a person with a mental illness.
Some law enforcement agencies are now adding more training on how to
deal with those calls, especially after some recent cases involving officers
and people in emotional distress.
Roseville officers responded to a call Wednesday of a man who
neighbors said had been having "mental outbursts."
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K-9.
"The intersection between law enforcement and folks who suffer from
mental illness is a huge issue," Maplewood Police Chief Paul Schnell
said.
Schnell is among those pushing for more training for officers. Ten of his
officers will take part in crisis intervention training this year.
"There's a major push around training of officers to be able to recognize
issues of danger and to try and perhaps adjust tactics around some of
those things," Schnell said.
He says some of that involves officers reaching out to people they have
come into contact with before, and that have been emotionally distressed
in the past.
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2/16/2016 Local Police Training For Encounters With People With Mental Illness«WCCO I CBS Minnesota
It also means working with their family members and friends more
closely.
"Anything that we can do as a community to intervene and address that is
to our long-term best interest," Schnell said.
There have been four cases in the Twin Cities where emotionally-
distressed or suicidal people were shot and killed by police since January
of last year. The person who was killed had a weapon in their possession
in each situation.
John Baker is a retired marine who now trains officers on how to deal with
veterans and people with PTSD.
"We never want them to compromise officer safety or public safety,"
Baker said.
He says the goal is take the person into custody without anyone getting
hurt — and then get them the medical help they need.
Baker says it is up to neighbors and family to let police know who they
are dealing with.
"If they know that person is emotionally disturbed, law enforcement needs
to know that because they're going to deal with that situation differently,"
Baker said.
The Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association will hold a conference in St.
Cloud in April.
Chief Schnell says this will be one of the most-discussed topics at the
conference.
This issue has also received a lot of attention nationally from the Police
Executive Research Forum, or the PERF Report.
John Lauritsen
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