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Zanesville Mental Health Diversion
Quick Facts:
- Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
- Zanesville Police Department
- Approximate number of officers in agency:
- 55
- 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:
- 2006
- Total number of officers in program:
- 33
Zanesville Mental Health Diversion
Contact:
- Name:
- Eric Lambes
- Title:
- Chief
- Organization:
- Zanesville Police Department
- Address:
- 332 South St.
Zanesville, OH - Email:
- zpd1@coz.org
- Phone:
- 740-455-0700
Agency Information
- Name of coordinating law enforcement agency:
- Zanesville Police Department
- Type of government that operates law enforcement agency:
- Township
- Approximate number of officers in agency:
- 55
Specialized Response Description
- Program start year:
- 2006
- 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:
- The program was initiated by cooperative meetings between the local suicide prevention group, NAMI,the mental health department and the police department.
- Total number of officers in program:
- 33
- Number of people with mental illness served:
- 101-200
- 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 line-level staff
- Mental health (and/or substance abuse) line-level staff
- Mental health (and/or substance abuse) supervisory-level staff
- Written agreement of roles and procedures:
- Yes
- Recruitment and selection:
- Officers are assigned.
- Program coordinator/boundary spanner
- Yes. The program coordinator represents a law enforcement agency
- Det. Dan Arter (740) 455-0707
Training on Mental Health Issues
- Types of training on mental health issues:
-
- Pre-service training for new recruits at the academy
- unknown
- Basic in-service training for all patrol officers
- 16 hours
- Number of officers who receive advanced training:
- 1-50
- Groups who conducts advanced training:
-
- Police officers
- Mental health professionals (crisis workers)
- Advanced training topics:
- Recognizing symptoms of mental illness, and clinical issues
- 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)
- Videotapes
- Other information on training:
- The intent of the training is to make officers aware of diversion possibilities so the person is directed along a treatment path and not a criminal path.
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 an arrest report
- Use of information on individuals' mental illness stored in police records:
- It is used for individual case management purposes only.
- Mental health professional available to support police responder:
- Yes, both on-site and remotely
- 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:
- Arrests = handcuffs Treatment - nonviolent- no handcuffs (officer discretion)
- Access to drop-off locations:
- Hospital evaluation
- Procedure for streamlined intake and a "no refusal" policy for police referrals?
- No
- Location of drop-off center(s):
- General hospital emergency room
- Drop-off center accepts people with co-occurring substance abuse disorders:
- No
- Length of time for drop-off and return to patrol:
- More than 45 minutes
Program Sustainability
- Data collection:
- No
- Published evaluation:
- No
- Local media coverage:
- No
- Legislative funding or support:
- No
- Key to the program's success:
- The program is really too new to provide an accurate evaluation.
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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