HUTTO – The Hutto Police Department is giving officers a new tool to help in cases involving people with mental disorders or mental disabilities.
The department this month recognized its first set of police to train and receive a Mental Health Officer certification, with plans to certify all sworn members of the force by year’s end.
“This initiative underscores our dedication to creating a supportive environment where officers can gain valuable knowledge, resources and experience to effectively handle mental-health related calls,” said a department spokesperson.
Officers face mental-health crises in many forms, ranging from a person with impaired faculties wandering off to an apparent murder-suicide in February that claimed the lives of a man and two women.
In the latter case, police waiting on crisis-negotiation experts to arrive attempted to communicate with the shooter when he killed himself.
Chief Jeffrey Yarbrough said officers now will be trained to handle calls involving mental-health situations in addition to de-escalation and active-shooter events.
The Mental Health Officer certification program is administered by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
It covers the legal aspects of mental-health commitments, liability, mental disorders and mental disabilities and a variety of developmental challenges including epilepsy, cerebral palsy and impaired hearing.
The course teaches officers to recognize indicators of mental illness, how to create the interpersonal relations necessary to effectively work with the mentally ill, their families, and the mental-health system; and intervention strategies for dealing with both low- and high-risk situations, according to the commission.
The Police Department also has a victim-assistance unit to support those affected by crime, offering aid to survivors and families facing mentalhealth issues.
Mental health and counseling referrals, crisis intervention and grief resources are some of the services.
Meanwhile, residents who want to learn skills to help someone experiencing a mental health-crisis can receive free training through the Mental Health First Aid program at Bluebonnet Trails Community Services.
To find out more, visit bbtrails.org/ mental-health-firstaid. Bluebonnet Trails is one of many area resources providing mental-health services, officials said.
