02.01.2015 Views

Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

3. <strong>Police</strong> College site visits<br />

44. The Review team conducted one-day site visits to both the Toronto <strong>Police</strong> College<br />

in Etobicoke, Ontario and the Ontario <strong>Police</strong> College in Aylmer, Ontario.<br />

45. At the Toronto <strong>Police</strong> College, the Review team was given a series of briefings<br />

regarding the training provided to police recruits, and regarding the in-service training<br />

provided annually to members of the TPS. The team viewed training videos dealing with<br />

police use of force and de-escalation in encounters with people in crisis, and viewed<br />

several real-life simulations of encounters with people in crisis and the debriefing<br />

exercises that followed. <strong>In</strong> addition, the Review team viewed the firearm requalification<br />

exercises required of TPS officers as part of their annual in-service training.<br />

46. At the Ontario <strong>Police</strong> College, the Review team was given a series of briefings<br />

regarding the training provided to all new police recruits in the Province of Ontario on<br />

topics such as firearms, defensive tactics, communication and debriefing. The team also<br />

viewed videos showing filmed examples of the live simulation training that new recruits<br />

experience at the College as part of their initial training to become a police officer.<br />

4. Communications Services site visit<br />

47. The Review team visited the TPS Communications Services centre, where the<br />

Service’s 911 call takers and police dispatchers are located. The topics addressed during<br />

this site visit included the manner in which 911 calls involving people in crisis are<br />

triaged, the types of information provided to officers responding to a call involving a<br />

person in crisis, the resources and techniques available to a 911 call taker who is<br />

contacted by a person in crisis, the psychological effect of the job on 911 call takers and<br />

the mental health resources provided by the TPS, and the communication constraints<br />

that arise when there is a crisis that elicits multiple 911 calls, multiple officers<br />

dispatched to a scene, and significant radio traffic.<br />

5. MCIT ride along<br />

48. Four Review team members accompanied four different MCIT units during their<br />

daily shift on four separate occasions. As explained in Chapter 11 (MCIT and Other<br />

Models of <strong>Crisis</strong> Resolution), each MCIT unit consists of a uniformed police officer from<br />

the TPS and a mental health nurse from a local hospital. The two-person team travels in<br />

a marked TPS police car, and responds to police calls involving persons who are, or are<br />

believed to be, in crisis or suffering from a mental illness. On the occasions that a<br />

Review team member accompanied an MCIT unit, the Review team member was able to<br />

observe the daily routine of the MCIT in its interactions with members of the public who<br />

are the subject of MCIT calls, and discuss issues regarding the MCIT in real time with<br />

the MCIT members.<br />

6. Mental health site visits<br />

49. The Review team undertook two site visits to organizations that provide care and<br />

support for persons experiencing mental health issues.<br />

<strong>Police</strong> <strong>Encounters</strong> <strong>With</strong> <strong>People</strong> in <strong>Crisis</strong> |53

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!