SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper announced Tuesday that deputies will no longer respond to non-criminal mental health calls, citing a recent federal court ruling regarding qualified immunity for officers in such cases, CBS News reported.
The policy change follows the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in Scott v. Smith, which stemmed from a 2019 Las Vegas incident where Roy Scott, experiencing hallucinations, called 911 for help, according to the report. Responding officers used force, leading to Scott’s unconsciousness and later death. The court ruled that the force used was unreasonable and questioned whether officers should have been involved at all, as no crime had been committed.
“We deal with crime, not mental health crises,” Cooper stated.
Under the new policy, dispatchers will ask callers specific questions to determine if a criminal element or danger to others is present. If not, deputies will not be sent, according to the report. The sheriff’s office will also no longer respond to standby requests from the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District unless a crime has occurred.
Cooper said additional changes are in progress, including transferring mental health calls directly to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline instead of referring callers. This adjustment aims to connect people with mental health professionals in real-time.
The decision has raised concerns among firefighters, who say they are now responding to more calls without law enforcement backup, according to the report. Sacramento Metro Fire Battalion Chief Parker Wilbourn called the court ruling “a bad decision” with significant consequences.
Cooper acknowledged the concerns but defended the policy.
“We love our brothers and sisters in the fire service, but some of these calls, we should not be going to,” he said.
