Metro considers non-law enforcement response for specific 911 calls - WSMV 4
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Metro Nashville Communications Center began restructuring the way their call centers work after receiving a grant Monday.
Who is going to respond when you call 911? It might not be who you think of people in the metro area. The city is working on a new response to certain calls that do not include a law enforcement response. This is still in the very early planning phases, and it is expected to roll out in early 2023.
Stephen Martini is in charge of the Metro Nashville Communications Center. Dispatchers there are tasked with asking the right questions to make sure the people on the other line are getting the help they need. Martini restructured their call system when Partners in Care started in June.
Partners in Care is a response in which an officer and mental health professional respond to scenes together involving someone in crisis. Since then, Partners in Care has responded to more than 2,000 calls and only 4 percent have ended in arrests.
“Nationally, the conversation escalated about defunding the police,” Martini said. “What people were asking for wasn’t to defund law enforcement, but let’s more accurately look at law enforcement responses and make sure we are sending the right people to the right place at the right time.”
Now, Martini will be doing another overhaul of their call criteria as the city plans to expand the program and offer a response that does not include law enforcement at all. Through a federal grant, Nashville is one of five cities set to offer this, likely sending a medic along with a mental health clinician to certain calls. Senior Policy Advisor Dia Cirillo said they’re looking at the Star Model in Denver and believes the new response will largely support the homeless. “When you call 911, it is police, fire, ambulance or community services now in Denver,” Cirillo said. “That fourth option could be a very good option for Nashville.”
Martini said right now, two thirds of calls they receive don’t require fire, EMS or police. “When you send the wrong resource like law enforcement to someone who needs a mental health clinician, we are tying up a law enforcement resource,” Martini said.
Martini said he thinks this new service will better serve Nashville. “As a system, we need to better understand the problem being reported to send the right solution,” Martini said.
Next week, the city will have introductory meetings with consultants to get the ball rolling on this. The Mayor’s Office said that Metro Police has been an essential partner around crisis response and will continue to be as the city develops this new service. The other cities participating are in Colorado and Georgia.
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source: https://www.wsmv.com/2022/04/05/metro-considers-non-law-enforcement-response-specific-911-calls/
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