Resources

This report breaks down all the recommendations we support, the ones we don’t, and why. We also look at potential revenue streams to pay for these shifts in practice and new community safety programs, analyze OPD calls for service data in a brand new APTP report, and highlight work already happening at the grassroots level that needs more investment. Such community programs are already keeping us safe — which is no surprise because #WeKeepUsSafe and #WeTakeCareOfUs.

Police have long been the only first responders available to provide timely responses to health and safety issues. Yet, police are inappropriate responders for a substantial portion of 911 calls, tasked with responding to situations that pose no imminent threat or danger to others, such as mental health crises or neighbor disputes. This contributes to overpolicing and police violence. Vera analyzed 911 call data from nine cities to understand what people urgently need from public safety systems and how we can reduce our overreliance on police to meet those needs. These fact sheets include recommendations for policy makers on better practices for 911 protocols, when to employ civilian crisis responders, and how to make sure 911 centers meet community needs.

Police officers often serve as first responders to mental health and substance abuse crises. Concerns over the unintended consequences and high costs associated with this approach have motivated emergency response models that augment or completely remove police involvement. However, there is little causal evidence evaluating these programs. This study presents evidence on the impact of an innovative “community response” pilot in Denver that directed targeted emergency calls to health care responders instead of the police. Evidence shows that the program reduced reports of targeted, less serious crimes (e.g., trespassing, public disorder, and resisting arrest) by 34% and had no detectable effect on more serious crimes. The sharp reduction in targeted crimes reflects the fact that health-focused first responders are less likely to report individuals they serve as criminal offenders and the spillover benefits of the program (e.g., reducing crime during hours when the program was not in operation).

What is mental health? How can we be more whole and how can we advocate for systems that help all of our community members heal? In this episode, we look at mental health with two practitioners — Iresha Picot and Jacqui Johnson. Listen to their conversation that ranges from trauma to mental health crisis response to hip-hop. Learn about the policy changes that could make city services more just and what we all need to be well.

In this Live Interview from 1/11, we talk with Derecka Purnell, author of ‘Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests, and the Pursuit of Freedom’ about her new book, her personal journey of embracing an abolitionist model and how, in the midst of a full blown reactionary moment over a rise in murders, activists can address legitimate fears of crime and provide an alternative vision to the cruel, failed “lock em up” approach.

Do you know who is helping to put your sheriff in office? A new report shows what happens when construction, health, gun, and technology companies receive lucrative contracts from the office of the sheriff in return for campaign dollars. We scoured six years’ worth of public information & campaign finance reports. Our research found upwards of $6 million in campaign contributions that create potential conflicts of interest for the sheriffs of 11 different states.

Two 911 calls, six years apart, reveal the perils of policing and the promise of alternatives. Learn about the role the Anti Police-Terror Project plays in creating alternative responses to police in the Oakland, California area.

How are community justice organizations creatively imagining more holistic alternatives to the criminal justice systems? Join members of Reclaim Philadelphia, Youth Empowerment for Advancement Hangout (YEAH) Philly, Amistad Law Project, and Youth Art & Self-Empowerment Project (YASP) to discuss this topic.

Portland Street Response (PSR) is a new first responder program for non-emergency calls involving people experiencing homelessness or mental health crisis. The program launched on February 16, 2021 in the Lents neighborhood in Portland, OR and operates Monday to Friday from 10 AM to 6 PM. The pilot is coordinated by Portland Fire & Rescue (PF&R), and the founding team consists of a firefighter paramedic, a licensed mental health crisis therapist, and two community health workers. The team is dispatched from the Bureau of Emergency Communications (BOEC) when a caller reports one or more of the following and the individual has no known access to weapons and is not displaying physically combative or threatening behavior.

The mixed-methods evaluation is comprehensive, community centered, and includes feedback from a variety of stakeholders and sources, including interviews with unhoused community members and others served by Portland Street Response. This six-month program evaluation report summarizes the findings of our evaluation thus far. However, the evaluation is ongoing and will culminate in a one-year program review at the end of the pilot period in spring 2022.