Train law enforcement officers

Law enforcement officers are trained to recognize and appropriately respond to people with mental illnesses and co-occurring disorders. Training commonly includes information about the signs and symptoms of mental illness and crisis management and intervention techniques.

For more information on this intervention, see this resource:

• Police-Mental Health Collaboration (PMHC) Toolkit ("Training")

For a sample related to this intervention, see this resource:

• Roll Call Training Video Series, The Guidance Center

Local Examples

Madison County, TN Madison County Sheriff's Office

• Comprehensive training is organized by the Madison County Law Enforcement-Mental Health Collaborative partners and is managed by a full-time training director.
• The collaborative conducts 40-hour CIT training, CIT train-the-trainer courses, and training on numerous mental health-related topics and skills.
• Training is offered to a variety of stakeholders and personnel.

For more information on this example, see this resource:

• Madison County Sheriff's Office Law Enforcement-Mental Health Learning Site Profile

Harris County, TX Houston Police Department

• The agency provides multitiered mental health training for all officers, including CIT, Advanced CIT, state-required CIT Refresher, Mental Health Officer certification classes, de-escalation courses, Trauma Affected Veterans classes, and crisis communications courses.

For more information on this example, see this resource:

• Houston Police Department Law Enforcement-Mental Health Learning Site Profile