AUGUSTA - Rep. Victoria Morales, D-South Portland, introduced a bill to add crisis response to the list of emergency services dispatched under Maine's E-911 system during a public hearing before the Legislature's Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee on Thursday.
Under the current system, dispatchers direct emergency fire or medical services in response to 911 calls as appropriate. All other emergency calls go to law enforcement, even when they involve a mental health or substance use emergency.br /
"Prevention saves lives and money. When we design systems, like E-911, with that in mind, we all do better in terms of both human and financial outcomes," said Morales. "The goal with this bill is to shift the response for individuals with unmet mental and behavioral health needs away from law enforcement and toward professionals who are trained in crisis response and behavioral health.
LD 1306 would amend the law to include crisis response services as part of the emergency services offered through the E-911 system at the dispatch level to individuals experiencing mental health emergencies, emergencies relating to a substance use disorder or other emergencies for which fire, emergency medical or police services are not required.
Liz Blackwell-Moore, a public health professional and certified prevention specialist who has worked in the field of substance use and chronic disease prevention for more than two decades, told members of the committee in written testimony that a disproportionate number of young Mainers who interact with law enforcement have experienced serious trauma.
"The justice system, including police contact, is not the place to treat young people with the highest rates of trauma," Blackwell-Moore wrote. "But alternative ways of dealing with emergency calls must be available in order to use behavioral health approaches to address behavioral health emergencies."
According to a report by the Vera Institute of Justice, a national organization whose mission is to build and improve justice systems, law enforcement is often asked to respond to crisis calls that could be more safely and effectively addressed by health professionals.
"With more than 240 million 911 calls made each year, police have become the default first responders for a wide range of social issues, from mental illness to substance use to homelessness. The dire shortcomings of this approach are reflected in the disproportionate number of people with mental illnesses and substance use disorders killed by police every year and the disproportionate numbers held in jails and prisons," the report states.
Less than 5% of 911 calls result in arrest and less than half of one percent result in the use of force, according to the ACLU of Maine.
"Given that police officers are the only officials who can legally use force, the fact that only a fraction of a fraction of 911 calls require a use of force should spur us to rethink our policing systems," said Michael Kebede, policy counsel for the civil rights organization.
The committee will hold a work session on the bill in the coming weeks. At that time, committee members will have an opportunity to offer amendments and vote on a recommendation to the full Legislature.
Morales is serving her second term in the Maine House. She represents part of South Portland and is a member of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee.
Contact:
Jackie Merrill [Morales], 812-1111