Shifting mental-health calls away from police easier said than done, says NRP chief
Niagara Regional Police Chief Bryan MacCulloch acknowledges anti-racism association’s call to defund parts of the police budget and have that money transferred to another entity — but “that entity doesn’t exist.”
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Niagara Regional Police Chief Bryan MacCulloch would like a solution to the growing mental-health crises that doesn’t involve police, but there isn’t an agency currently that could handle the calls.
MacCulloch was reacting to a letter from the Niagara Region Anti-Racism Association to Niagara Region councillors asking them to press the regional police to reduce its budget by shifting welfare checks and mental-health calls that do not require an armed response to a civilian service.
“When somebody calls 911 regarding a personal crisis, there are three options — police, fire or ambulance,” MacCulloch said as he took questions while presenting the service’s 2023 operating budget of $177.9 million to regional council Thursday.
“Based on the caller’s information, the call is triaged and sent to the appropriate agency. I know there have been calls for defunding the police and having that money go to another entity, but that entity doesn’t exist.”
The anti-racism association sent the letter to councillors before police presented their operating budget. The civilian-dispatched service would specialize in handling specific calls for assistance where an armed response wasn’t necessary, said Saleh Waziruddin, an executive committee member of the anti-racism association.
“It would be irresponsible, not just financially but also morally and socially, to not ask for a different operating budget proposal that shifts welfare check and mental health calls to a civilian service specialized in those issues,” Waziruddin said.
MacCulloch said there is no fourth entity to respond to people in crisis. Over the last five years, the regional police has seen an increase of 238 per cent involving persons in crisis.
“The challenge that any police service or any municipality faces is that the intersectionality between mental health, criminality and drug addictions creates the volatile behaviours we’re seeing,” MacCulloch said. “I’m not sure a fourth entity would necessarily be prepared to respond to those calls where there is a possibility of violence.”
MacCulloch said if there was a way to triage the calls so the ones where there is no risk to public safety are indentified, Niagara EMS could provide a medical response to a medical crisis.
“The problem is the information we receive may not necessarily indicate that somebody is suffering from a mental health crisis,” MacCulloch said. “It may be somebody armed with a knife or the type of call where it may not be as readily apparent that it is a mental health call.”
MacCulloch said a subcommittee of different organizations examining how first responders respond to persons in crisis is at work.
“They are working at being able to isolate those calls so they can be downloaded to EMS,” the chief said. “But I don’t have to tell this council, Niagara EMS is experiencing its own challenges with off-load waits at the hospital. I’m not sure they are necessarily in a position to provide that assistance.”
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