Crisis Call Diversion •

Crisis Call Diversion •

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The goal of alternative crisis response is to redirect non-emergency,  non-life-threatening calls away from police resources toward specialized services. Police are currently sent to respond to calls where they may not be necessary (for example: car break-ins) or where other responders are better trained to deescalate and can provide specialized support. Develop a strategy to scale up Crisis Call Diversion and a proposed automated police report system to divert crisis intervention calls and collect data about where to most effectively apply existing resources and personnel.  

PROBLEM

What is the problem?  

  • Police sent as a response to calls where more specialized support is needed

  • People facing mental health challenges are repeatedly placed in the jail

  • Alternative response programs are poorly resourced

What “accountable to” constituency does this problem impact? How (financial, public health etc)?  

  • Business owners with physical locations

  • Residents of downtown and Midtown

How has the City attempted to solve this problem in the past? Has a comprehensive solution been previously proposed/funded?  If it fell short, how so?

  • Comprehensive? No. The city receives 45,000+ Crisis Intervention Calls for Service but only around 10% of those calls are screened through Crisis Call Diversion (2020 data).

What promises (in law or spirit) has this promise broken? 

  • “We aren't criminalizing homelessness.”

SOLUTION

What part of the problem does the solution solve? 

Where else has solution or similar been attempted? 

What is left unsolved for by this solution? 

  • Issues such as car break-ins

  • Lack of mental health service capacity

Does the city have legal authority to pursue this solution? Has state pre-emption been attempted in related policies? 

  • Yes the city has authority. Dallas requires that low-level crimes like burglary of a motor vehicle are reported online.

  • What is the financial impact to the city? 

    • Revenue generating, if so how?  

      • Grants

    • Funding from within General Fund

      • Cost-savings in police time, including overtime. 

  • Anticipated opposition 

  • Anticipated supporters 

  • How does this stand up to Whitmire? 

  • Fits with his “efficiency” focus and his claims that HPD is understaffed.