More than seven years after it was established, the East Mississippi Crisis Intervention Team continues to provide a valuable service to the area.

The program, which trains law enforcement personnel to help individuals dealing with mental health issues, was started in early 2009 by the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department and the Meridian Police Department in the cooperation with Weems Community Mental Health and the  Meridian office of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

The agencies worked to create a coalition to promote state and community collaboration across the mental health and criminal justice systems.

   The creation of the Community Partnership on Mental Health brought together more than 20 agencies representing law enforcement, corrections, medical facilities, social service organizations, government agencies, legal entities and advocacy organizations. The mission of the partnership was to reduce the contact of people with mental illness and substance use disorders with the criminal justice system by improving their access to care and supporting their recovery.

   In 2010, the Mississippi Legislature passed legislation that allows properly-trained officers the ability to divert persons in mental health crisis away from jail and into  appropriate mental health settings. This new legislation designated local Community Mental Health Centers to provide oversight of CIT Teams and two grants from the U.S. Department of Justice provided funding needed to build the foundation of the program.

   The East Mississippi CIT Program is based on the nationally known “Memphis Model” pre-arrest jail diversion program originally developed in Memphis, Tenn.

The program gives police the tools to assess an individual dealing with a mental health crisis, with an emphasis on getting the person appropriate services and keeping them of out jail.

The clients are taken to Central Mississippi Residential Center in Newton, where they can be further assessed and treated.

Elon Espy, crisis services director at CMRC, says the program has several benefits.

“It helps us treat clients actually in crisis instead of waiting until we have to get a court order, like we once did,” she said. “That helps us divert them from being committed and having to go to the state hospital. It has increased access to care for a lot of clients.”

“The quicker you can intervene and help someone, the quicker they are going to stabilize,” he said. “And the less long term damage there will be to them.”

Espy says law enforcement officers have welcomed the new tools.

“We’ve been really impressed with how officers are dealing with the clients,” she said.

   Jake Hutchins, director of the Bureau of Community Services with Mississippi Department of Mental Health, says the teams provide a valuable resource by providing law enforcement the tools to assess people experiencing a mental health crisis.

“It benefits the individual, it benefits the family, and it takes the responsibility off the law enforcement officer,” he said.

The program continues to expand and grow, Hutchins said.

“We’ve had officers call from all over the state — the interest is growing,” he said. “Because jail is not the proper place for a person suffering from a mental illness.”  

The program is coordinated collaboratively by Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department and Meridian Police Department. Additional law enforcement partners include the Clarke County Sheriff’s Department, DeKalb Police Department, Kemper County Sheriff’s Department, Meridian Public School District Campus Police, Newton Police Department and Quitman Police Department. Mental Health partners include Alliance Health Center, Central Mississippi Residential Center and Weems Community Mental Health.

Who makes up a crisis intervention team?

A community partnership between law enforcement and members of the local community is essential for a CIT. While officers are trained in crisis situations, the goal is to divert individuals from a possible arrest to a setting where they can receive services for their illness. Partnerships between law enforcement, community mental health centers or other local health care providers are critical in arranging a single point of entry for treatment services.

What training is required?

CIT officers receive 40 hours of training on topics such as mental health diagnoses, medications, substance use issues and more. They also receive hands-on instruction in de-escalation techniques and hear first-hand accounts from individuals who have experienced mental health crises themselves. The training has a specific focus on safety, for both the officers and the individuals in crisis.

Does CIT work?

Studies have shown that crisis intervention significantly reduces the instances of arrest and re-arrest for individuals with serious mental illness. CIT officers are able to identify individuals experiencing a crisis and are more likely to divert them to a treatment program. CITs have also been shown to reduce officer injuries and calls requiring special officer teams. CITs have worked in both urban and rural communities.