Six years after police restrained a naked and erratic Daniel Prude on the cold asphalt of Jefferson Avenue, community organizers gathered at the street corner to launch a new, non-police crisis response team.
The program was born out of discussions statewide on how communities can better respond to mental health emergencies.
While Rochester created its Person in Crisis team after Daniel Prude’s death, a Democrat and Chronicle analysis of city data found that police still respond to most mental health crisis calls alongside social workers and, in some cases, respond without them.
Rochester relies on the city-run Person in Crisis team to fill this need. Organizers for HOPE First Roc, however, said their new effort will provide a more empathetic, people-centered approach.
HOPE First Roc will accept calls for help through an independent hotline ― not 911 or 211 ― and send a team of trained peer responders with lived experience to scenes including wellness checks, mental health crises, or concerns about drug use.
Help is voluntary and the hotline will not work with police, reducing fear of forced hospitalizations or arrests. Staff members will provide follow-up services for 90 days while connecting the individual or family to other resources.
“What we know with certainty, is that when someone is in crisis, what they need is a human response,” said HOPE First Roc director Halima Aweis. “They need someone who has been there. Someone who understands. Someone who will meet them with dignity, not force.”
HOPE First Roc launches non-police mental health crisis hotline
Rochester’s Person in Crisis team emerged in the aftermath of Prude’s 2020 death. The goal was to redirect non-violent behavioral and substance use crisis calls away from police, instead sending mental health professionals better equipped to handle these emergencies.
City data analyzed by the Democrat and Chronicle shows officers remain heavily involved in many behavioral health crisis responses, despite the program’s goal of diverting calls away from law enforcement.
That was the case last year when a 911 call for a suspicious person ended in the death of Akintunde Campbell steps from his mother’s home. Family members said Campbell was in the throes of a mental health crisis when he was killed by police; officers said they were forced to shoot Campbell when he pulled out a gun after walking away from them.
His death came as HOPE First Roc was starting to onboard staff. Organizers said the killing underscored the importance of alternative crisis teams that prioritize care and understanding over law and order.
RPD officers receive 24 hours of crisis response training in the police academy, and can elect to sit through an additional 40-hour training offered twice a year. Comparatively, HOPE First Roc said its team has received over 300 hours of cross-cultural, bias and de-escalation training based on best practices from existing community response models nationwide.
“As we gather here today, we gather with pride, we gather here with resilience and a commitment to ensure that what happened to Daniel Prude, never ever happens to anyone else in our community,” Councilmember Stanley Martin said at the organization’s June 22 launch. “… That the moment of crisis does not become a death sentence.”
HOPE First Roc will receive funding as part of an $8 million state investment in pilot crisis response teams. The PIC team also received state funds to add peer navigators at the city level this year.
The help hotline for HOPE First Roc is now available for residents in the 14611, 14619 and 14608 ZIP codes. Trained peer responders are available daily between 3 to 11 p.m., including holidays. Organizers hope to expand its hours and coverage area as the program grows. You can reach HOPE First Roc at (585) 837-HOPE (4673).
— Kayla Canne covers community safety for the Democrat and Chronicle with a focus on immigration, police accountability, government surveillance and how people are impacted by violence. Follow her on Instagram @bykaylacanne. Get in touch at kcanne@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester mental health crisis calls still include police | Exclusive
Reporting by Kayla Canne, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kayla Canne, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | USA TODAY Network
