Ellis Amdur

“If law enforcement is going to play a proper role in protecting society, which can include both protecting ordinary citizens from mentally ill people as well as protecting the often-victimized mentally ill citizens from those who mean to harm them, we need to understand whom we’re dealing with. If we find the behaviors of mentally ill individuals to be incomprehensible and their actions unpredictable, someone may be hurt, perhaps unnecessarily. This should cause any rational officer to ask a number of questions every time they’re dispatched on a call involving an allegedly mentally ill individual: • Many mentally ill people look just like anyone else. How can we recognize them? •    There is not just one “type” of mentally ill person. Furthermore, people with the same diagnosis can be very different. How can I tell what to expect from a specific person even when I know something about mental illness in general? •    How can I tell if I’m going to be safe? This person seems to be acting so strangely. Is what they’re doing an indicator of hostility or potential violence? •    Can I handle this call by myself? I don’t want to appear weak or not able to handle a simple call like a mentally ill person just needing a ride to the hospital. When should I call for a back-up officer? The problems police face in dealing with mentally ill citizens can’t be made to disappear. Our jails fill with them, mostly due to arrests for various nuisance crimes: trespass, drinking or urinating in public, dine and dash, pedestrian interference, assault, etc.”
― Ellis Amdur, The Thin Blue Lifeline: Verbal De-escalation of Mentally Ill & Emotionally Disturbed People - A Comprehensive Guidebook for Law Enforcement Officers