Fort Wayne CIT Program

Quick Facts:

Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
Fort Wayne Police Department
Approximate number of officers in agency:
445
Primary specialized response:
Police officers are trained to provide crisis intervention services and to act as liaisons to the mental health system.
Program start year:
2005 or earlier
Total number of officers in program:
Today it is 62, but growing soon.

Fort Wayne CIT Program

Contact:

Name:
Dottie Davis
Title:
Deputy Chief
Organization:
Fort Wayne Police Training Center
Address:
7602 Patriot Crossing
Fort Wayne, IN 46816
Email:
dottie.davis@ci.ft-wayne.in.us
Phone:
260-427-1411

Agency Information

Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
Fort Wayne Police Department
Type of government that operates law enforcement agency:
Township
Approximate number of officers in agency:
445

Specialized Response Description

Program start year:
2005 or earlier
Primary specialized response:
Police officers are trained to provide crisis intervention services and to act as liaisons to the mental health system.
Secondary specialized response:
There is only one specialized response program in the jurisdiction.
Background information:
After 1.5 years of studying the Memphis Model of CIT and looking at the manner in which officers responded to persons in crisis, our stakeholders agreed that the program should be adopted within the City of Fort Wayne.
Total number of officers in program:
Today it is 62, but growing soon.
Catchment area:
The entire jurisdiction
Funding source(s):
  • Police Department
    • Staff supported by funding:
  • Law Enforcement Officer

    • Program Partners and Personnel

    Existence of planning and oversight committee:
    Yes, currently
    Committee participants:
  • Law enforcement leadership
  • Mental health (and/or substance abuse) supervisory-level staff
  • Mental health (and/or substance abuse) leadership
  • Consumers of mental health services
  • Family members of consumers
  • Advocates
    • Mental health or advocacy agencies that participate in program:
    Park Center, Inc., Parkview Behavioral Health, St. Joseph Behavioral Health, Mental Health American in Allen County
    Written agreement of roles and procedures:
    No
    Recruitment and selection:
    Officers volunteer and some are selected.
    Program coordinator/boundary spanner
    Yes. The program coordinator represents a law enforcement agency
    Same

    Training on Mental Health Issues

    Types of training on mental health issues:
  • Pre-service training for new recruits at the academy
  • 1 hour
  • Basic in-service training for all patrol officers
  • 1 hour
  • Basic in-service training for dispatchers and / or call takers
  • 1 hour
  • Advanced in-service training for select patrol officers
  • 40 hours
  • Advanced in-service training for dispatchers and / or call takers
  • 40 hours
    • Number of officers who receive advanced training:
    101-200
    Groups who conducts advanced training:
    • Police officers
    • Mental health professionals (crisis workers)
    • Medical professionals (doctors or nurses)
    • Consumers
    • Advocates
    • Family member of a person with mental illness
    Advanced training topics:
    • Recognizing symptoms of mental illness, and clinical issues
    • Co-occurring disorders
    • Psychiatric medications
    • Community resources (mental health services, etc.)
    • Legal issues concerning individuals with mental illness
    • Legal issues concerning police officer liability
    • De-escalation techniques
    • Less lethal use of force options
    • Suicide prevention
    • The role of families and other supports in mental health treatment and recovery
    Advanced training methods:
  • Presentations (including panels, lectures, and/or PowerPoints)
  • Role plays
  • Site visits to community mental health facilities
  • Videotapes
    • Other information on training:
    We have now collaborated with the Indiana Center for Autism out of Bloomington, IN. They will be teaching a course at our next CIT training in February. Also, the State Developmental Center is closing so we will be working more with the MR/DD population. We are currently interfacing with them and they will be providing a class, as well.

    Response Procedures

    Standardized dispatch questions:
    Yes
    Dispatch documentation:
  • Document in central computer database used for all calls, such as a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system
    • Incident documentation by responding officer:
    • Record information on a form used only for mental health calls
    Use of information on individuals' mental illness stored in police records:
    Information stored in police records identifying the person as a consumer is used for information for responding officers to understand that mental illness is likely involved in the call for service.
    Mental health professional available to support police responder:
  • Yes, remotely by telephone or dispatch (e.g. a crisis worker or psychiatric emergency room personnel)
    • Officers permitted to transport people with mental illness to services when:
    • The person has volunteered to receive mental health treatment
    • The person is being brought to a hospital for emergency evaluation
    • The person is being brought to a crisis center or other health care facility for stabilization or medications management
    Officers allowed to transport a person without handcuffs:
    No
    Access to drop-off locations:
    Yes. It is open 24 hours a day.
    Procedure for streamlined intake and a "no refusal" policy for police referrals?
    Yes
    Location of drop-off center(s):
  • General hospital emergency room
    • Drop-off center accepts people with co-occurring substance abuse disorders:
    Yes
    Length of time for drop-off and return to patrol:
    More than 45 minutes

    Program Sustainability

    Data collection:
    Yes
    Published evaluation:
    Yes.
    Local media coverage:
    Yes.
    Legislative funding or support:
    No
    Key to the program's success:
    We have kept statistical data on any call for service involving mental illness since the program's inception. We have added areas in which to gather data, such as use of force, sex, and race in the last year.
    About this information:

    A program representative provided this information details through a detailed survey.

    For more information on the survey, read about our methodology or download a pdf of the full survey.

    If you are a representative of a similar program not yet listed in our database, please register and take the survey to contribute your information.

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