Tuesday, April 14, 2009 — Five members of law enforcement from Albemarle Police Department and Stanly County Sheriff’s Office were among those earning Crisis Intervention Team designation at a special graduation ceremony April 10. The ceremony was at the Salisbury Police Department, 130 E. Liberty St., Salisbury. This brings the total number of officers trained in CIT in the two departments to 15 since the program’s inception in January 2008.
Four members of Albe-marle Police Department and one member of Stanly County Sheriff’s Office joined 20 other law enforcement members from seven area agencies who completed the intensive 40-hour training.
Graduating from Albemarle Police Department are: Sgt. J.L. Griffith, Police Officer Cindi Rinehart, Police Officer Lance Fallen and Police Offi-cer Misty Mabry. Lt. Darrell Burgess graduated from Stany County Sheriff’s Office.
Officers who complete the CIT training go through a graduation ceremony attended by senior executives from each law enforcement agency, NAMI affiliate members and mental health professions. Each CIT officer receives a certificate of completion from the Rowan Cabarrus Commu-nity College Criminal Justice Department, a Plaque of Appreciation from PBH and the local NAMI affiliates, and a gold CIT uniform pin which they wear on their uniform to distinguish them as CIT officers.
The CIT training is significant because it teaches law enforcement how to handle crises in mental health situations. There have already been instances in which Crisis Intervention Team techniques have been utilized by officers graduating from these classes.
The training is sponsored by PBH and is patented after the nationally renowned Mem-phis Tennessee Police Depart-ment CIT Program. The CIT Program was first introduced to this area in January 2008 through the collaborative efforts of the Rowan, Cabar-rus and Union County Affi-liates of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Rowan Cabarrus Community College and PBH.
It is an innovative program that offers specialized training to law enforcement officers responding to mental health crisis situations, and encourages cooperation among law enforcement agencies, mental health professionals and local community agencies to meet the special needs of people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Participating officers earn continuing education credits to help them meet their annual law enforcement training requirements. They receive training in understanding mental illness, developmental disabilities, substance abuse, co-occurring disorders, brain theory, personality disorders, post traumatic stress disorder, and the effects of psychotropic medications.
The program emphasizes safety first and teaches crisis intervention and verbal de-escalation techniques that reduce the risk of harm to officers and those experiencing the mental health crisis. The goal of the program is to train 25 percent of all area law enforcement in the PBH five-county catchment.
The next class for CIT training will convene in July.
For more information, contact LaShay Avery, Criminal Justice Program Coordinator, at (704) 721-2713 or by email at quinettar@pamh.com.
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