Judges Leadership Initiative

Law Enforcement

Encounters Between Law Enforcement and People with Mental Illnesses

In the police departments of U.S. cities with a population greater than 100,000, approximately 7 percent of all police contacts—including both investigations and complaints—involve a person believed to have a mental illness.ⁱ

Over the course of a six-year period (from 1998 to 2004), the Akron (Ohio) Police Department responded to 10,004 calls related to a "mental disturbance." This represents just under 7 percent of the total call load during that period.ⁱⁱ

An in-depth study of police departments in Memphis (Tenn.), Knoxville (Tenn.), and Birmingham (Ala.) estimated that officers average six encounters with people with mental illnesses per month.ⁱⁱⁱ

A study of a special unit of a major metropolitan police department mandated to respond to incidents involving "emotionally disturbed persons" estimated that 5 percent of the dispatches per year involve a person with mental illness.^iv

The New York City Police Department responds to a call dispatched as involving a person with mental illness every six minutes.^v

During the year 2000, law enforcement officers in Florida transported more than 40,000 people with mental illness for involuntary 72 hour psychiatric examinations under the Baker Act. This exceeds the number of arrests in the state during 2000 for either aggravated assault (39,120) or burglary (26,087).^vi

Law Enforcement Responses to People with Mental Illness

In a 1999 survey of police departments in 194 U.S. cities with a population of 100,000 or more, 96 of the 174 departments that responded (more than 50 percent) did not have a specialized response for responding to people with mental illness.^vii

The same 1999 survey classifies specialized police responses to people with mental illness into three categories.^viii
1) Police–based specialized response—sworn officers who have special mental health training (3 percent of departments in survey)
2) Police–based specialized mental health responsenon—sworn mental health consultants hired to work with police (12 percent)
3) Mental health–based specialized mental health response—rely solely on mobile crisis teams which have special relationships with the police (30 percent)

Outcomes of Specialized Police Responses

Shortly after the Memphis CIT was implemented, injuries to individuals with mental illnesses caused by police decreased by nearly 40 percent.^ix

The rate of TACT (similar to SWAT) calls in Memphis has decreased by nearly 50 percent since the implementation of their CIT program.^x

In 1999, the Albuquerque Police Department, which also employs a CIT model, reported that officers arrested, transported to jail, or otherwise took into protective custody fewer than 10 percent of those people with mental illnesses they contacted. Injuries were also reduced to approximately 1 percent of calls after their CIT model was implemented. The decrease in use of SWAT was reported at 58 percent.^xi

San Jose (Calif.) Police Department's CIT program reported a 32 percent decrease in officer injuries over a one-year period following program implementation.^xii

The Memphis (Tenn.) Police Department's CIT program reported that during its first four years, the rate of referrals by law enforcement officers to the regional psychiatric emergency service increased by 42 percent.^xiii

ⁱ Martha Deane, Henry J. Steadman, Randy Borum, Bonita Veysey, Joseph P. Morrisssey. "Emerging Partnerships Between Mental Health and Law Enforcement." Psychiatric Services Vol. 50, No. 1. January 1999: pp. 99-101.

ⁱⁱ Jennifer L.S. Teller, Mark R. Munetz, Karen M. Gil, and Christian Ritter, "Crisis Intervention Team training for police officers responding to mental disturbance calls," Psychiatric Services 57, 2006: pp. 232-237.

ⁱⁱⁱ Randy Borum, Martha Deane, Henry J. Steadman, and Joseph Morrissey. "Police Perspectives on Responding to Mentally Ill People in Crisis." Behavioral Sciences and the Law, vol. 16, 1998: pp. 393-405.

^iv Robert Panzarella and Justin O. Alicea . "Police tactics in incidents with mentally disturbed persons," Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 20, no. 2, 1997: pp. 326-338.

^v Unpublished statistic courtesy of Dr. James Fyfe, Director of Training, New York City Police Department.

^vi Annette C. McGaha, Paul G. Stiles, The Florida Mental Health Act (The Baker Act) 2000 Annual Report, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, July 2001.

^vii Martha Deane, Henry J. Steadman, Randy Borum, Bonita Veysey, and Joseph P. Morrisssey. "Emerging Partnerships Between Mental Health and Law Enforcement." Psychiatric Services Vol. 50, No. 1. January 1999: pp. 99-101.

^viii Martha Deane, Henry J. Steadman, Randy Borum, Bonita Veysey, and Joseph P. Morrisssey. "Emerging Partnerships Between Mental Health and Law Enforcement." Psychiatric Services Vol. 50, No. 1. January 1999: pp. 99-101.

^ix B. Vickers. Memphis, Tennessee Police Department's Crisis Intervention Team, Bulletin from the Field, Practitioner Perspectives, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance.

^x Randolph Dupont and Samuel Cochran, "Police response to mental health emergencies—barriers to change," Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law vol. 28, no. 3, 2000: pp. 228-244.

^xi D.L. Bower and W. G. Pettit, The Albuquerque Police Department's Crisis Intervention Team, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, February 2001.

^xiiMelissa Reuland, A guide to implementing police-based diversion programs for people with mental illness, Delmar, NY: Technical Assistance and Policy Analysis Center for Jail Diversion, 2004.

^xiiiRandolph Dupont and Samuel Cochran, "Police response to mental health emergencies—barriers to change," Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law vol. 28, no.3, 2000: pp. 228-244.