Police Responses to Persons With Mental Illness: Going Beyond CIT Training

Since 1988, a major development to reduce lethal encounters between police and persons displaying signs of mental illness has been the adoption by many police departments of crisis intervention teams (CITs). Created in Memphis, Tennessee, CIT programs incorporate deescalation training, police-friendly drop-off centers, and linkage to community treatment programs. The authors summarize issues discussed at a recent Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration workshop at which participants highlighted the importance of going beyond CIT training to most effectively include police in a crisis care continuum model. Such an approach focuses on how police can be engaged as partners with behavioral health providers who are designing and implementing services in the crisis care continuum. Reframing the approach to police responses to persons in mental health crises offers the prospect of improving both public health and public safety goals.