56 officers trained to deal with mentally ill

By WILLIAM K. ALCORN

VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Completion of the third Mahoning County Crisis Intervention Team training class brings to 56 the number of area law enforcement personnel who have received the specialized training in how to deal with mentally ill people.

The 40-hour course is offered by the Mahoning County Mental Health Board, in cooperation with NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) Mahoning Valley and the Youngstown State University Police Department.

The course teaches police officers how to more safely interact with individuals who are experiencing behavioral health issues. The increase of individuals experiencing mental health issues has illuminated the need for this type of training, said Ronald A. Marian, executive director of the Mahoning County Mental Health Board.

The course was conducted at the YSU Police Department, and the graduation ceremony was at the YSU DeBartolo Stadium Club.

According to retired Akron Police Department Lt. Michael Woody, an expert in the crisis intervention field, “at least 10 percent of an officer’s calls for service involve someone with a mental health illness.”

Woody trained the law enforcement coordinators of CIT in Mahoning County.

The benefits of the training include a reduction of injuries to police officers and people with mental illness, and a reduction of people with mental illness being incarcerated inappropriately, Marian said.

The most recent graduates are officers from Austintown, Craig Beach, Boardman, Mill Creek, YSU and Youngstown City police departments, and the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Department.

During the graduation ceremony, Patrolman Michelle Glaros, a Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer with the Boardman Police Department, said the week provided her with a better understanding of mental illness.

“It gave all of us the opportunity to see for ourselves that treatment does work. We learned we can be ‘gatekeepers’ for individuals we encounter that are suffering from mental illness, and that there are many specialized agencies in our area to utilize for treatment in lieu of jail,” Glaros said.

Marian said the mental health board will continue to provide the CIT course on a semiannual basis, with the ultimate goal of having at least 25 percent of all Mahoning County law enforcement personnel training.

Each training session costs about $10,000 at no cost to law enforcement, said Michele Petrella, coordinator of the CIT program for the mental health board.

alcorn@vindy.com