Oklahoma City Police CIT

Quick Facts:

Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
Oklahoma City Police
Approximate number of officers in agency:
1040
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:
2002
Total number of officers in program:
120
Jurisdiction Level
municipal
Jurisdiction Type
urban
Age Level
adult
Criminal Justice System Focus
Law Enforcement

Oklahoma City Police CIT

Contact:

Name:
Robert Nash
Title:
Captain
Address:
701 Colcord Dr.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73102
Email:
robert.nash@okc.gov
Phone:
405-316-4123

Agency Information

Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
Oklahoma City Police
Type of government that operates law enforcement agency:
Municipal
Approximate number of officers in agency:
1040

Specialized Response Description

Program start year:
2002
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:
Police officers are trained to provide crisis intervention services and to act as liaisons to the mental health system.
Background information:
In 2001, staff from OCPD, NAMI OK, & ODMHSAS attended CIT Training at Memphis and returned to develop the 40 hr OCPD CIT class. First 4 classes completed staffing of 100 CIT officers by 2003. Partnered with OACP in 2003 and began providing training for other police agencies in Oklahoma. Expanded OCPD strength in 2008 to 120 CIT Officers. 2009, assisted Okla Dept Corrections with development and delivery of Corrections Crisis Response Team Training (CCRT) using CIT Model. Have conducted 29 CIT Schools in OK by 6/2010.
Total number of officers in program:
120
Number of people with mental illness served:
More than 500
Catchment area:
The entire jurisdiction
Funding source(s):
  • Police Department
  • State Mental Health Authority
    • Staff supported by funding:
  • Law Enforcement Officer
  • Program Coordinator

    • Program Partners and Personnel

    Existence of planning and oversight committee:
    Yes, currently
    Committee participants:
  • Law enforcement line-level staff
  • Law enforcement supervisory-level staff
  • Law enforcement leadership
  • Mental health (and/or substance abuse) line-level staff
  • 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:
    ODMHSAS, NAMI OK
    Written agreement of roles and procedures:
    Yes
    Recruitment and selection:
    Officers volunteer and some are selected.
    Program coordinator/boundary spanner
    Yes. There are multiple program coordinators
    Capt. Robert Nash-OCPD-405-316-4123 Tania Rubio-Rosas-ODMHSAS-405-522-6856 Capt. Bob Cornelison-MWC Police-405-739-1303

    Training on Mental Health Issues

    Types of training on mental health issues:
  • Pre-service training for new recruits at the academy
  • 16-20
  • Basic in-service training for all patrol officers
  • 2 hr/year
  • Basic in-service training for dispatchers and / or call takers
  • 8 hr
  • Advanced in-service training for select patrol officers
  • 40 hr
  • Advanced in-service training for dispatchers and / or call takers
  • 8 hr
    • 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
  • Community members
  • Advocates
  • Family member of a person with mental illness
    • Advanced training topics:
    • Recognizing symptoms of mental illness, and clinical issues
    • Co-occurring disorders
    • history of mh in u.s.
    • 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
  • Virtual reality/computerized simulations of mental illness symptoms
    • Other information on training:
    Our CIT Training has been promoted by Okla Assoc. Chiefs of Police to expand statewide. We partner with other Metro Area Departments to conduct training and seek improvements. The LE, MH and advocacy members meet as needed to ensure coordination and quality of training & service.

    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:
  • Relay information to dispatch who records it in general computer database used for all calls, such as a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system
  • Record information in a field encounter form, or other form used to document every citizen encounter
  • Record information in log maintained by mental health personnel at the crisis drop-off location or by some other mental health organization
    • Use of information on individuals' mental illness stored in police records:
    Quality Assurance
    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:
    Discretion of Officer
    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):
  • Psychiatric emergency / crisis center
  • Psychiatric emergency room in general hospital
  • 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:
    31-45 minutes

    Program Sustainability

    Data collection:
    Yes
    Published evaluation:
    No
    Local media coverage:
    Daily Oklahoman; Wall Street Journal.
    Legislative funding or support:
    No
    Key to the program's success:
    Consistent analysis over time has shown that our efforts are producing less use of force in protective custody cases. The use of CAD and RMS information allows for measure of demand, response and timely identification of trends.
    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.

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