"Are they committing a crime?"
"Are there weapons involved?"
A mental health expert or deputy will respond to the call depending on a "yes" or no" response. The Orange County Health Care Agency and the sheriff's department are vital to distinguishing between police work on typical crime and mental health crises.
The dual-track response system is critical and beneficial for the county's largest police agency, and local health officials and divides criminal and social problems according to ArcaMax.
Veronica Kelly, Director of Orange County Health Care Agency's Behavioral Health division and OC Links, a piece that connects individuals in crisis to counselors and various service providers hints that, "I think, to the public, this could seem like a big change. But, we have always worked closely with the sheriff's department.
Residents of Orange County should feel safer and secure thanks to Kelly's agency staff for developing 911 "decision tree" screening questions as stated by county health workers who have worked with police agencies for numerous years to decrease violence by or to officers.
“The instinct for everyone, when something happens, is to call 911, and have the cops come first. But they’re not (mental health) clinicians,” Kelley said.
“They get training, they learn how to de-escalate. But as we’ve seen throughout the country, sometimes interaction involving someone in mental crisis and police can result in violence,” she added.
“That impacts individuals, on both sides.”
Thankfully, Irvine, Anaheim and Huntington Beach have partnered up with Be Well, an independent nonprofit that guides mental health professionals to aid police while working with the mentally ill and homeless.
The police have guided individuals to shelter or sobriety while suppressing public intoxication.
Santa Ana Councilmember, Phil Becerra, implied on behalf of Orange County that "This community is compassionate. We have more shelter, beds and services than anybody in the county."
The new 911 quiz could drastically affect countless lives.
The sheriff's department equips police services for 13 cities around Orange County spanning approximately 25% of the county's 3.1 million residents. The dispatcher receives approximately 10,000 mental health issues and housing calls.
“I think it’ll be potentially life-saving and also save the county money,” said Eve Garrow, a senior policy analyst with the ACLU of Southern California who focuses on homeless issues.
“If law enforcement is not required, then it should not be deployed.”
Numerous experts believe that ensuring police officers are focused on dealing with crime and mental health professionals interlinked with social problems is extremely effective for residents and saves taxpayers money.
Replying "yes" to six out of 12 questions instructed by dispatchers will allow an officer to be sent to the scene. Similarly, any call sent to OC Link- a situation where mental health staff starts the procedure of trying to respond and help the caller – is returned to the sheriff’s department if the county health worker feels that’s justified. Even the caller’s tone of voice can be cited by a dispatcher to request an officer's response.
“Deputies will still be involved at the same level,” said Sheriff Department spokesman Sgt. Frank Gonzalez.
“Our deputies are trained to handle, and welcome, all kinds of calls and situations.”
Gonzalez hinted a goal will be met when new screening can steer deputies away from non-criminal problems and assist other safety concerns.
“Our basic mission is to protect the community,” he said. “We’ll go down any appropriate path, or any direction, to do that.”
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