The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, and the Long Beach Police Department have teamed up with the Guidance Center, a nonprofit child and family mental health service provider, to launch a series of short training videos to help officers identify and appropriately interact with people experiencing mental illness.
The “Roll Call Mental Health Training” videos are accessible to law enforcement agencies across the country for free.
“The new training videos give more officers and deputies access to critically important information about individuals who suffer from mental illness,” said Jim McDonnell, Sheriff of Los Angeles County. “This resource will help provide police with some of the tools needed to increase compassion and reduce the need to use force. The goal is to purposefully de-escalate the situation and work toward a positive resolution and get them help.”
The eight videos are 7-10 minutes long–short enough that they can be played during roll call, rather than in a traditional training session—and offer scenario-based training on issues like nonviolent de-escalation, identifying and assessing mental illness, potential suicides, understanding Autism, and self-care, among others.
Patricia Costales, CEO of the Guidance Center says that collaborations like the Roll call Mental Health Training project help to break down the stigma surrounding mental health through education. Costales stresses the “urgent need to address mental health differently in our communities across the country.”
According to sheriff’s department data, 82% of total use of force incidents in 2016—excluding shootings—involved people who either had a history of mental health issues, or were under the influence, or both.
The sheriff’s department has a couple dozen Mental Evaluation Teams–comprised of a specially trained sheriff’s deputy and a Department of Mental Health clinician– that respond to mental health crisis calls, and work to diffuse potentially violent situations, and avoid arrests and hospitalizations when possible. (The LAPD and LBPD have officer-clinician teams, as well.) These teams cannot respond to every call, however.
A February report from the sheriff’s department’s Civilian Oversight Commission evaluated the state of the LASD’s MET program, and concluded that the department needed to increase the number of MET teams from 23 to 60. The report pointed to the fatal shooting of Dennis “Todd” Rodgers, a man with bipolar disorder who was brandishing electric hair clippers in a parking lot and “acting erratically” when deputies shot him. The deputies had asked for an MET team to respond and de-escalate the situation, but there were only two teams on duty in the whole county, and both were responding to other calls.
Through the video series, the three law enforcement agencies hope to foster better outcomes for police encounters with people experiencing mental illness, which are often some of the most “challenging circumstances” officers find themselves in, says LAPD Chief Mike Moore.
“Officers encounter unpredictable mental health situations on a daily basis and these videos reinforce critical communication skills to help achieve a positive and safe outcome for all parties involved,” says LBPD Chief Robert Luna.
Image from Roll Call Mental Health Training promotional video.
This is so pathetic. A disguntingly corrupt department like the lasd is incapable of following through with this. The pos deps are gonna find a way to get around this. You’ll see in about 30 years when something bad happens and then someone question’s the process and see’s what had been happening leading up to that point…hahahahahaha the high school loser’s really need to stop bullying and find a hobby…
Ya, in 30 years they’re finally gonna get what they got coming to ‘em. 2048 that’s when it’s all coming down, good to know.
Meet? Shall we make it in 30 years or so, say 2048 there about? Meet me in Pershing square , wear an orange hat, pink shoes, and rainbow bib overalls so I’ll know who you are.
Hey Celeste….are your cool with this kind of language being used??? Juvenile, low-brow and crude are a few adjectives that come to mind. It’s pretty bad and you as a female, I would think, would find it pretty offensive.
@ Hmmm: Blowhards, comedians, clowns and characters always make appearances in the WLA comment section. Fortunately for them we will never know who they really are. The age old adage of “meeting” someone at a particular place doesn’t cut it anymore. Their comments speak highly of their character.
Hey CF thats definitely a high school loser right lol. Instead of focusing on the article this character is reading comments and personalizing shit that doesn’t involve him. And to the judging statements, Im sure that hmmmmm gets with the other crackers and speaks very highly of the other races hahahaha what a fucking joke!!
….Weak Sauce…loser…
Lets meet and see who’s weak. Ur probably gonna punk out of that one. Now go make sure ur little demons arent planning a school massacre…please really it has to stop
Hey Hugo,go stand in Pershing square wearing the orange hat, pink shoes, and rainbow overalls , just give the date and times and you can take on all comers. Be sure to post a picture, just so we know you really showed up.
Hugo, I would not use that language with Madame Kong. These fine officers have a way to “seeing” or “hearing” things that are not there. They see guns where there is only a belt buckle or cell phone. And, they may just interpret your words as a threat and claim you assaulted or threatened an officer. Madame Kong seems to be one of those fine officers that is transformed from a country bumpkin toe-tapping on the porch to Hank Williams, Jr. (lets be clear is the Jr.) grumbling about how the coloreds are ruining the world into a modern day cowboy when he puts on the badge. Of course, now that he is retired and cant wear the badge, he is back to grumbling, albeit on the computer now. I have not heard reports of a middle-aged pot-bellied white man in a pick up going to south LA to harass black kids, so I suspect he is back on the porch. He is not that brave without the badge and gun.
And, Mr. Hmmmm is back to whining and squealing about the “bad” language people use on the site to address the fearless men and women who protect us from all evil in the world, but has no complaints about the Madame Kongs of these world who sprinkle their ramblings with a few racist comments. I think their intelligible reports with grammar and spelling almost as bad as mine is more offensive, especially when you consider that we should at least be getting high school graduates with the generous pay we give our porcine brethren to ride around and save the world.
Our troll using two different names to call upon and agree with herself again. Every time she comes up with a different name (in this case Hugo) she always dumbs down the language and writing style, especially when impersonating a person of color (POC), a little insight into her mindset.
Well..it’s confirmed…CF=Celeste Freeman. Just as the liberal medial controls the narrative they want the masses to read and hear, just as the ACLU only champions the civil liberties of those whose it’s leftist agenda gives a head nod to, so does CF …AKA, Celeste Freeman hide behind her alter ego.
Huguo Shitlitz…..you and CF can go fuck yourself or each other.
Oh my God…your rambling and run on rants make my head heard. Seek help and take your anti-psychotic meds you sick fuck.
Editor’s Note:
Dear “Hmmmm,”
You’re absolutely right. The comment section has gone off the rails again.
Dear everyone else,
Clean it up, and dial back the toxic hostility or I’m going to both delete and block people.
I have—as I’m tired of repeating—neither the time nor the interest to be a playground supervisor.
As any regular commenter is aware, it is a small group of people—on both sides of the political fence—who, behind the mask of anonymity, come here to engage in little more than rock throwing and viciousness.
Sometimes each one of this group also offers something thoughtful. But too often, the viciousness carries the day.
So here’s the deal: Behave like adults or I’ll block you.
If you have any questions about that borderline, feel free to email me personally.
Otherwise, I trust you’re each smart enough to figure it out.
C.
@ Conspiracy – Not one to interrupt anyone else’s opinions via this blog, however the disrespect towards the editor and founder of this blog “Celeste Fremon” is totally unacceptable without any execuses whatsoever. Words of advice to you > GROW UP!
Hey Celeste an interesting fact u should research and discuss.
***Male training officers that engage in sexual relation’s with female trainee’s for department favors***
I.e., a female trainee, struggling during patrol training is given the opportunity to sleep with her male training officer in exchange for struggle’s being overlooked and being signed off.
The LASD’s dirty little secret. I promise, check it out…Only the guys that have a problem with this and the females that have done it will have a problem with this