By Susan E. Rice, Chetek Alert (Wisconsin)
A recent increase in the number of mental health emergency detentions conducted by Chetek police is putting a strain on the department’s finances and personnel.
When a police officer is called to a scene where a person is experiencing a possible mental health crisis, the officer is required to make an assessment and determine if intervention in the form of a 72-hour emergency hospital admission is required.
Under Wisconsin State Statute a law enforcement officer may take an individual into custody if the officer has cause to believe that the individual is mentally ill, is drug dependent, or is developmentally disabled, and that the individual evidences any of the following:
* probability of physical harm to himself or herself based on threats of or attempts at suicide or bodily harm,
* probability of physical harm to other persons based on recent homicidal or other violent behavior on his or her part,
* probability of injury to himself or herself due to impaired judgment,
* a belief that he or she is unable to satisfy basic needs for nourishment, medical care, shelter or safety without prompt and adequate treatment.
This is a broad statute with the interpretation of the law left to the officer called to the scene of the complaint.
“What people do not realize is that this statute is designed to cover everybody, from third and fourth graders to your Alzheimer’s patient,” stated Chief Bob Breidenbach. “The police have absolute authority to determine if a person needs to be taken in, but the criteria of Chapter 51.15 needs to be met.”
In 2004, the Chetek Police Department has conducted 17 commitments under the dictates of Wisconsin State Statue Chapter 51.15. Almost half of these commitments have involved juveniles, the latest a 15-year-old girl.
Enforcing a Mental Health Commitment
To better understand the statute and how it can and should be enforced, Brad Jahr, Behavioral Health Manager at Barron County Human Service, and Robert Rogers, Deputy Corporate Counsel for Barron County, attended a meeting of the Police Commission on Tuesday, Nov. 16. Rogers informed the commission that, as of Monday, Nov. 15, there had been 205 new cases and 67 reopened cases this year that fell under Statute 51.15 in Barron County alone.
In most cases, the law enforcement officer does not see the behavior that led to the call; therefore, the officer must rely on the statement of witnesses.
“From the witness statements and behavior the officer may observe once at the scene, the officer has to determine that the person has a plan to cause harm to oneself or others, is suffering from mental difficulties and that there is the possibility the person may act on the plan,” stated Rogers. Information gathered from third parties must be deemed reliable and the third party must be willing to cooperate.
“Too often when the police officer arrives at the scene, the people there think that they can just wash their hands of the situation,” stated Breidenbach. In reality, the complaining witnesses must take the time to work with the police. Paperwork required for a mental health confinement must be completed quickly.
“We have one shot at getting it right because of the 72-hour hold limit,” explained Breidenbach. When a case is received by the Barron County office, Rogers must look at the evidence and prepare the case for a probable cause hearing which can take place as soon as the next morning.
Assembling the legal evidence is only one of the law enforcement officer’s responsibilities in the confinement process.
Once a determination to admit an individual for observation has been made, the police must handle all arrangements from finding a hospital facility that will accept the patient to transporting the person to that location. “The reality is that there aren’t enough hospitals to handle the situation and, in our area, they can be very far abroad,” stated Jahr.
Only a few facilities are approved to accept 51.15 admissions, and not all of these will accept juvenile patients.
“It can be a very frustrating experience to try and find a hospital and then find the staff to make the transport,” stated Breidenbach. The Chetek police look for openings in Cumberland, Duluth, Rhinelander, Eau Claire, or LaCrosse hospitals. Most juvenile cases must be transported to Miller Dwan Medical Center in Duluth or, possibly, Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire.
“Typically, young kids do not have the capability to do serious harm. In these cases we lean on the parents as much as possible, getting them to accept responsibility for their child and then setting up a treatment plan,” explained Jahr.
“By sending a kid into an acute facility they are more likely to pick-up more bad behaviors and to escalate to more serious actions.” For example, a teen may develop an interest in cutting themselves, which is currently a very “popular” response among teens who are acting out.
Police Officers Are Not Medical Personnel
Finding a hospital that will accept the patient and then transporting the individual can take hours, and the individual must be monitored by a law enforcement officer at all times. This can put an officer into overtime and drain the department’s budget.
In a recent case involving a 5-year-old, a police officer was required to observe the youth for four hours while he colored pictures. In the end, the youth was released into the care of his parents since no facility could be found.
In another situation, a mental health commitment was determined and the police transported the youth to the hospital. At the hospital, it was discovered that the patient had a double dose of prescription medication and was at risk of overdosing. “Had I known this, I would have sent the kid by ambulance,” stated Breidenbach. “We are not medical personnel. We are cops.”
Cops who have been charged with making a difficult call. “The one time you don’t take a kid to the hospital and they go home and kill themselves... how would you live with that?” added Chetek Lieutenant Mark Petersen.
Breidenbach brought the issue before the Police Commission to help the members understand not only the role the police officer must play, but to understand the financial strain this places on the department.
“Most of these incidents don’t happen during the day.
We have to pull in officers to cover,” explained Breidenbach. In the case of a female patient, a female escort must be found to travel with a male officer. Breidenbach explained that he is not going to send a male officer along with a female who is already experiencing problems.
“It’s an excellent law,” says Breidenbach. “It’s implementing it that can be very difficult.”