Local police departments, St. Clair County Community Mental Health strengthen partnership through new programs

The Port Huron Police Department has a new face, but this employee isn't wearing a police officer's uniform.

The department recently hired a master-level clinician to provide in-house mental health support and services, a move that is indicative of a push in recent years from law enforcement and community mental health professionals to strengthen their partnership and provide greater mental health response and services to residents.

Kurt Meier, a St. Clair County Mobile Crisis Unit social worker/clinician, joined the Port Huron Police Department full-time last month.

While Meier and department officials are still working out the specifics of Meier's role, he said he will respond with officers when they transfer residents to the hospital who are under a mental health petition.

Assistant Chief Brian Kerrigan said Meier will also respond with officers when there is a known mental health emergency or component to help the officers respond to the situation, provide de-escalation techniques and provide mental health services to the individual or individuals.

"Kurt can offer services that we can't. When we need to handle a call we're generally putting on a band-aid and then trying to move on, where he can do a lot more than just put a band-aid on," Kerrigan said. "He can essentially give some more time or do some follow-up based solely on the mental health component, freeing up the police officers to handle the criminal justice components or response that we need out there."

Meier said he will also follow up with individuals if he can't attend a call for service or to ensure individuals are getting the support they need. He is a wealth of knowledge and resources for any department member to reach out to, Chief Joe Platzer said.

Platzer said the relationship between Meier and the officers, whether it be through riding on patrol with officers or being available for questions in his office, has been a great benefit in the short amount of time he's been at the department.

"The other day Kurt and I were talking in his office, and one of the officers came in and he was just like, 'Hey Kurt, did you hear about that call we went on last night? Did you get a chance to follow up with such and such?'" Platzer said. "Just the interaction right there is already paying dividends; the fact the officers can go and talk to him, get to know him and he's knowing the officers, and they're building that partnership where they can exchange information and those calls are being followed up on."

Kerrigan said getting individuals the mental health services they need reduces calls for service, as it can reduce repeat calls to the same home, and it prevents individuals from reaching a crisis situation. By providing mental health services, Meier will also free up police resources so they can be allocated to other policing priorities.

The Port Huron Police Department's program is a continuation of the department's awareness of and years-long investment in providing mental health resources and other community policing initiatives, Kerrigan said.

The partnership between mental health professionals and law enforcement has been receiving renewed interest in recent years, due to an increase in community mental health needs and a national focus on law enforcement's role in responding to mental health emergencies, several officials said.

Several law enforcement officials and St. Clair County Community Mental Health Chief Executive Officer Deb Johnson said the partnership benefits residents because most of the time, the police are the first people to respond to an emergency. It can only benefit residents when officers have the proper training and mental health professionals are also available to give residents the support they need.

"The (CMH) programs help us to stay trained and help us serve the public better because oftentimes when we get these calls, the help (residents) need is from a mental health professional, not necessarily law enforcement, so it enables them to get the help they need," St. Clair County Sheriff Mat King said.

And each partner has their own role. King said if someone is a danger to themselves or others, law enforcement is needed at the scene first to assess the scene and ensure everyone's safety. From there, mental health professionals are needed to provide de-escalation, to respond to the person needing help and to connect them to the appropriate services.

"You can't just send the police all the time because some of these individuals will ultimately not need to be charged criminally but need mental health help, and you can't just send CMH because individuals may be dangerous or be committing a crime that needs to be dealed with by law enforcement," King said.

New programs strengthen partnership between Community Mental Health and law enforcement

Other recent St. Clair County Community Mental Health initiatives include the first responder crisis line, which was established in spring 2021. The 24 hour, seven-days-a-week resource provides counseling, referrals and services to first responders, who experience traumatic events every day as a part of their regular job duties, Johnson said.

Kerrigan and King said when officers and deputies receive the support they need and are mentally healthy, it improves the service they can give to residents.

Community Mental Health also offers mental health first aid training, which is available to every St. Clair County resident. Several area police departments, including Port Huron, St. Clair, Marine City, the St. Clair County Sheriff Department and school liaison officers, have attended, Johnson said.

CMH also began offering new officer training in 2021, which is available to all county police departments.

County police departments also work with the mobile crisis unit, which responds to mental health emergencies and provides services for people experiencing a mental illness. People may be referred to the mobile crisis unit through law enforcement, schools, other medical facilities, family, friends or through self-referral.

Johnson said since fiscal year 2019, the mobile crisis unit has received 140 contacts from law enforcement for individuals already receiving services from CMH, and 56 contact for individuals not already receiving services.

Johnson said the mobile crisis unit receives contacts from law enforcement anywhere from zero to six times a week, with eight contacts since the beginning of September.

Offering help

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health emergency, or are in need of mental health services, there are several resources available:

• Call the St. Clair County Community Mental Health Mobile Crisis Unit at (810) 966-2575; call their access line at (888) 225-4447 or visit scccmh.org/

• Call the Sanilac County Community Mental Health at (810) 648-0330 or visit their website at sanilaccmh.org/

• Call the call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). There is also a crisis text line, text HOME to 741741 for free crisis counseling.

• Contact Meier at the Port Huron Police Department directly at (810) 985-0170

Contact Laura Fitzgerald at (810) 941-7072 or lfitzgeral@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Police, St. Clair County Community Mental Health strengthen partnership