Police, fire, EMT and mental health: How one city is leading the charge to reshape 911
Durham, North Carolina, is utilizing unarmed community response teams to handle non-violent 911 calls involving mental health or homelessness. This model is part of a growing national trend to reduce police involvement in social service-related emergencies.
Why it matters
The shift in emergency response protocols reflects broader national debates regarding police reform and the effective allocation of public safety resources.
On a recent Wednesday in Durham, N.C., Rob Crisp and Allie Craft were on a mission, equipped with snacks, bottled water and hygiene kits. They are part of Durham's unarmed community response team, and they were looking for a man someone called 911 about.
"Our notes say we got a trespasser on a business property. He has a bunch of belongings, and he's refusing to leave," Crisp said.
In a parking lot on the side of a strip mall, they found the man, wearing a McDonald's T-shirt and a backward baseball cap and toting several full garbage bags and a sofa with him. Crisp approached the man, who looked tense. He said he didn't want anyone to touch his things.
Crisp, a peer support specialist who has struggled with drug addiction in the past, took his time talking with him.
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