SPRINGFIELD –  Mayor Domenic Sarno has turned down a proposal to include in the FY22 budget a provision that would have created a crisis response team – a non-armed team of health professionals that could be dispatched to non-violent 911 calls such as intoxication and drug overdose, suicide risk and self-harm.

The Pioneer Valley Project (PVP) had suggested the creation of such a unit and noted at a press conference on May 19 that Sarno had denied their request for a meeting and instead had a member of the Springfield Police Department to respond to their proposal.

According to information released by the PVP, “The Springfield Community Crisis Response Team (SCCRT) would be comprised of one medic (EMT or nurse) and one crisis worker. This 24/7 mobile crisis intervention team would be dispatched by 911 police/fire services to respond to a variety of non-violent crises … Every member of the SCCRT team would be trained in de-escalation and harm reduction techniques. Armed SPD officers would not be dispatched for these calls … The vast majority of the cost of SCCRT would be paid for through an allocation in the American Rescue Plan Act. The March COVID Relief package includes $1 billion for states to begin setting up this model (based on the CAHOOTS model in Eugene, OR) and would reimburse 85 percent of the costs of the service for the next three years.”

According to the Eugene, OR police department website, “CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets) is a mobile crisis intervention program staffed by White Bird Clinic personnel using City of Eugene vehicles. This relationship has been in place for nearly 30 years and is well embedded in the community. CAHOOTS provides support for EPD personnel by taking on many of the social service type calls for service to include crisis counseling. CAHOOTS personnel often provide initial contact and transport for people who are intoxicated, mentally ill, or disoriented, as well as transport for necessary non-emergency medical care.”

Reminder Publishing checked on May 20 to make sure Sarno would have no more additional comment on the subject. He did not.

At the press conference, City Councilor Tracye Whitfield thanked the Springfield police for their efforts to try to stem gun violence in the city and said, “We need them to combat that.”

Having SCCRT would allow the police to concentrate on potentially violent crimes and situations, Whitfield noted. “We need to let the experts handle what they are experts in,” she added.

Whitfield, who chairs the council’s Finance Committee, said with the federal money available, “the time is now [for the program].”

The president of PVP, the Rev. David Lewis Sr., a licensed clinical social worker, said, “sending in an armed police officer can cause more harm.” He said such actions “have led to needless loss of life.”

He added as an African-American, he understand there is a “lack of trust due to lived experiences” between some police and communities of color.

“We want to bring a new model to the city,” he said.

Police Sgt. Brian Elliot in his letter to the PVP said he is supervising a program similar to CAHOOTS model.

“I’m pleased to inform you that the city of Springfield offers one of the most progressive, best practice/data driven crisis intervention response programs in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Our current “Crisis Intercept’ program dates back to 2016 when the Springfield Police Department partnered with the Department of Mental Health to begin crisis intervention training for our members of the police department. Behavioral Health Network (BHN) was contracted by DMH to provide crisis training for members of the Springfield Police Department.”

He continued, “To date 25 percent of our department has received this 40-hour training. As you would imagine, it is very difficult to train 40 hours of crisis training given our call volume and competing need to complete essential mandated certification training. Crisis Intervention Training is on-going and remains a high priority for Commissioner [Cheryl] Claprood.”

He noted in 2019 the department launched its program which dispatches a BHN clinician to any call with someone in crisis. There are currently six clinician assigned to the program.

“We are very proud to say that we are five years ahead of the national realization that traditional law enforcement alone no longer meets the need of complex calls for service that may or may not involve a criminal component.”

In responding to the letter, Lewis said the existence of the current police program is “news to me.” He also noted that it has taken five years for 25 percent of the police department to become trained.

PVP member David Finkelstein, who is a EMT and nurse, said the program would save the city money and decrease the number of calls the police receive.

“We want our officers to focus on the crucial public safety issued in the city,” he said.