<html><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:12pt"><div style="RIGHT: auto"><SPAN style="RIGHT: auto">This is part of the problem with refusing to tax the wealthiest residents of Idaho. Society doesn't have enough revenue to treat those with disabilities and drug <SPAN style="RIGHT: auto" id=misspell-0><SPAN>addiction</SPAN></SPAN> problems. As a result, they create more costly problems for society and the police are the ones stuck with dealing with the problem. Police don't have the training and degrees to deal with it and the State ends up paying many times over the costs had they not cut mental health and <SPAN style="RIGHT: auto" id=misspell-1><SPAN>disability</SPAN></SPAN> services.</SPAN></div>
<div style="RIGHT: auto"><SPAN style="RIGHT: auto"></SPAN> <VAR id=yui-ie-cursor></VAR></div>
<div style="RIGHT: auto"><SPAN style="RIGHT: auto">Donovan J. Arnold</SPAN></div>
<div><BR></div>
<DIV style="FONT-FAMILY: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">
<DIV style="FONT-FAMILY: times new roman, new york, times, serif; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">
<DIV dir=ltr><FONT size=2 face=Arial>
<DIV style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #ccc 1px solid; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 0; MARGIN: 5px 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; HEIGHT: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 0px; BORDER-TOP: #ccc 1px solid; BORDER-RIGHT: #ccc 1px solid; PADDING-TOP: 0px" class=hr contentEditable=false readonly="true"></DIV><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">From:</SPAN></B> Tom Hansen <thansen@moscow.com><BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">To:</SPAN></B> Moscow Vision 2020 <vision2020@moscow.com> <BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Sent:</SPAN></B> Tuesday, August 28, 2012 9:46 AM<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Subject:</SPAN></B> [Vision2020] Fwd: Boise police officers say they <SPAN id=misspell-2 class=mark>shouldn</SPAN>’t be counselors<BR></FONT></DIV><BR>
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto" id=yiv1935256937>
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<DIV>Forwarded to y'all fine V-Peeps.<BR><BR>
<DIV><SPAN id=misspell-3 class=mark>Seeya</SPAN> round town, Moscow.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Tom Hansen</DIV>
<DIV>Moscow, Idaho</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>"We're a town of about 23,000 with 10,000 college students. The college students are not very active in local elections (thank goodness!)."</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>- Dale Courtney (March 28, 2007)</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR>Begin forwarded message:<BR><BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">
<DIV><B>From:</B> "<SPAN id=misspell-4 class=mark>Keim</SPAN>, Darrell E."<BR><B>Date:</B> August 28, 2012 9:22:30 AM PDT<BR><B>To:</B> "<A href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:thansen@moscow.com">thansen@moscow.com</A>" <<A href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:thansen@moscow.com">thansen@moscow.com</A>><BR><B>Subject:</B> <B>RE: [Vision2020] Boise police officers say they <SPAN id=misspell-5 class=mark>shouldn</SPAN>’t be counselors</B><BR><BR></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="RIGHT: auto" type="cite">
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto" class=yiv1935256937WordSection1>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Tom:</SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">I can’t post to V2020 from this address, but want you to know that Idaho statute changes over the past few years have had a huge impact on how the mentally ill are treated. Your article describes it well. Here is a link to a study done by the Region 2 Mental Health Board I work with showing alarming findings.</SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt"><A href="http://www.healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=XF6Atlk5zfI%3d&tabid=686&mid=6038" rel=nofollow target=_blank><SPAN style="BORDER-BOTTOM: windowtext 1pt; BORDER-LEFT: windowtext 1pt; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; PADDING-LEFT: 0in; PADDING-RIGHT: 0in; COLOR: #003366; BORDER-TOP: windowtext 1pt; BORDER-RIGHT: windowtext 1pt; TEXT-DECORATION: none; PADDING-TOP: 0in">Legislative Impact Survey Paper 2012-13 </SPAN></A></SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><A href="http://www.healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=XF6Atlk5zfI%3d&tabid=686&mid=6038" rel=nofollow target=_blank>http://www.healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=XF6Atlk5zfI%3d&<SPAN id=misspell-6 class=mark>tabid</SPAN>=686&mid=6038</A></SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Here is the abstract:</SPAN></div>
<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal align=center>Abstract</div>
<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>The United States has demonstrated that mental health is an important public health concern in our country. However, the recent economic crisis has persuaded many states across the nation to reduce budgets and decrease services available within the social welfare system. Idaho is among the states that have chosen to cut funding for mental health service delivery. The Idaho Region II Mental Health Board recognized the devastating effects of recent cuts to Medicaid and mental health services, and decided that a program evaluation of the needs and gaps within Region II would be beneficial to Idaho legislators and decision-makers as they begin the 2012 Legislative Session. This study looked at the effects of funding cutbacks by sending surveys to law enforcement, hospitals, prosecuting attorneys, schools, private mental health and substance use disorder providers, the
Behavioral Health Division of the Region II Department of Health and Welfare, and county social services directors. The findings of this study correspond with the 2011 National Alliance on Mental Illness (<SPAN id=misspell-7 class=mark>NAMI</SPAN>) report: “Increased burdens on law enforcement, increased incarceration of individuals with a mental illness, and decreases in services available for mental health consumers.”</div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><SPAN style="COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><B><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt">From:</SPAN></B><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"> <A href="mailto:keim152@gmail.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:keim152@gmail.com">keim152@gmail.com</A> [mailto:keim152@gmail.com] <B>On Behalf Of </B>Darrell <SPAN id=misspell-8 class=mark>Keim</SPAN><BR><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, August 28, 2012 7:52 AM<BR><B>To:</B> <SPAN id=misspell-9 class=mark>Keim</SPAN>, Darrell E. - Reg2<BR><B>Subject:</B> Fwd: [Vision2020] Boise police officers say they <SPAN id=misspell-10 class=mark>shouldn</SPAN>’t be counselors</SPAN></div>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div>
<div style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 12pt" class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div>
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<div style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 12pt" class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>---------- Forwarded message ----------<BR>From: <B>Tom Hansen</B> <<A href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:thansen@moscow.com"><A href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:thansen@moscow.com">thansen@moscow.com</A></A>><BR>Date: Tue, Aug 28, 2012 at 3:52 AM<BR>Subject: [Vision2020] Boise police officers say they <SPAN id=misspell-11 class=mark>shouldn</SPAN>’t be counselors<BR>To: Moscow Vision 2020 <<A href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"><A href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A></A>><BR><BR></div>
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>"In one case, Wiggins responded to five mental health calls for the same man. On the fifth, the man had hanged himself."</div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>So much for pro-life, huh?<BR><BR>Courtesy of the Idaho Statesman at:</div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><A href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/08/24/2242898/boise-cops-say-they-shouldnt-be.html" rel=nofollow target=_blank><A href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/08/24/2242898/boise-cops-say-they-shouldnt-be.html" rel=nofollow target=_blank>http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/08/24/2242898/boise-cops-say-they-shouldnt-be.html</A></A><BR><BR>-----------------------------------<BR><BR>Boise police officers say they <SPAN id=misspell-12 class=mark>shouldn</SPAN>’t be counselors</div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>The police chief wants a better network for people in mental health crises, so they don’t become criminal cases or suicide statistics.</div></DIV>
<DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div></DIV>
<DIV style="RIGHT: auto">
<div style="RIGHT: auto" class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal>On Tuesday night, a woman called police to a house near State Street because her husband was holding a gun to his head. The woman fled with her 2-year-old. Officers caught the man on the roof of his shed and took him into custody on a mental hold.<BR><BR>On Wednesday night, officers talked a suicidal woman down from the Emerald Street overpass. She was distraught over a recent DUI arrest and child custody issues. Officers took her into custody after closing the Connector for 30 minutes.<BR><BR>By noon Thursday, Boise Bench Patrol Officer Gary Wiggins had fielded four mental health-related calls.<BR><BR>“It’s a daily occurrence for us,” said Wiggins, a 20-year veteran.<BR><BR>Boise Police Chief Mike <SPAN id=misspell-13 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> said these cases and the May 31 death of Troy <SPAN id=misspell-14 class=mark>Epperly</SPAN> are among reminders that services are lacking for Idahoans
who need mental health care and that police are shouldering a growing burden.<BR><BR><SPAN id=misspell-15 class=mark>Epperly</SPAN> confronted police outside a Boise residence after telling his estranged wife he intended “suicide by cop.”<BR><BR>He refused to drop his gun. Police shot him. He died in the hospital.<BR><BR>Investigators last week concluded that the shooting was justified. But <SPAN id=misspell-16 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> and Wiggins hope for a day when mental health issues are resolved long before they become crises requiring police intervention.<BR><BR>DEMANDS ON OFFICERS<BR><BR>Officers get paid to be first responders. But they’re not mental health professionals, said Wiggins.<BR><BR>“We get calls on everything from people whose power has been turned off, threatening to kill themselves if someone <SPAN id=misspell-17 class=mark>doesn</SPAN>’t turn it back on, to people who used to be in mental health outpatient programs but
<SPAN id=misspell-18 class=mark>aren</SPAN>’t now because those programs don’t exist anymore,” said Wiggins.<BR><BR>“The worst thing for me is going into situations by myself,” he said. “Not because I’m worried for my safety, but because I don’t know what to do for these people.”<BR><BR>Twenty years ago, Wiggins spent lots of time making arrests. Now he jokes that each officer should get a <SPAN id=misspell-19 class=mark>Prius</SPAN> and work in street clothes because they spend so much time helping people find services. “We do more social interventions than crime-fighting,” Wiggins said.<BR><BR>Wiggins said he’s felt the effects of cuts at Health and Welfare. Mental health staffers once available 24 hours a day are still available all weekend — but not from midnight to 7 a.m. weekdays.<BR><BR><SPAN id=misspell-20 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> said police take people for mental hold assessment in only about 10 percent of mental
health calls. What happens to other men and women in distress?<BR><BR>“What do we do to help those people?” said <SPAN id=misspell-21 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN>.<BR><BR>And officers often end up on additional calls involving the 10 percent who have been hospitalized.<BR><BR>In one case, Wiggins responded to five mental health calls for the same man. On the fifth, the man had hanged himself.<BR><BR>Over the past two years, Boise police have responded to 13,000 mental health-related calls — everything from welfare checks to attempted suicides and overdoses.<BR><BR>Decades ago, domestic violence had a stigma similar to mental health issues and suicide. Society responded with tougher laws and coordinated services. That <SPAN id=misspell-22 class=mark>hasn</SPAN>’t happened for mental health.<BR><BR>“I can show you statistics that over the last five years, drunk-driving arrests have decreased by more than 50 percent and there’s a correlation of
fewer accidents. Roads are safer,” said <SPAN id=misspell-23 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN>.<BR><BR>“What I can’t do is show you the same decreases in suicides and people in crisis.”<BR><BR>ON THE FRONT LINE<BR><BR>Boise police have taken steps to prepare officers for expanding demands. After the 2004 fatal shooting of Matthew Jones, a 16-year-old who approached an officer with an unloaded antique gun, city Ombudsman Pierce Murphy recommended the department provide officers with training to defuse mental health crises.<BR><BR>The department, working with Health and Welfare, created a Crisis Intervention Team. Officers from across the department have received 40 hours of training.<BR><BR>The problem, <SPAN id=misspell-24 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> said after the <SPAN id=misspell-25 class=mark>Epperly</SPAN> shooting, is that such efforts are “downstream” — responding to people in crisis after the fact.<BR><BR>“As a state and society, we
need to focus on ‘upstream’ efforts to minimize using police from Boise, <SPAN id=misspell-26 class=mark>Chubbuck</SPAN>, Post Falls or any sheriff’s department in our state as primary intervention services,” he said.<BR><BR>WAITING FOR A <SPAN id=misspell-27 class=mark>HOTLINE</SPAN><BR><BR>One place to start would be a state suicide <SPAN id=misspell-28 class=mark>hotline</SPAN>.<BR><BR>Kathie Garrett, former state legislator and chairwoman of the Idaho Council on Suicide Prevention, said the goal is to get the <SPAN id=misspell-29 class=mark>hotline</SPAN> running by mid-November.<BR><BR><SPAN id=misspell-30 class=mark>Hotline</SPAN> advocates have raised close to $369,000, about $50,000 short of what they’ll need to operate for the first two years, said John <SPAN id=misspell-31 class=mark>Reusser</SPAN>, who’s been hired to head the <SPAN id=misspell-32 class=mark>hotline</SPAN>. The group is still raising money.<BR><BR>Both <SPAN
id=misspell-33 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> and Garrett say a <SPAN id=misspell-34 class=mark>hotline</SPAN> is just one step in what needs to be a network of services to help people — whether they have insurance or not — and to follow up after the crisis has passed.<BR><BR>A STATE RESPONSE<BR><BR>Idaho ranks 47<SPAN id=misspell-35 class=mark>th</SPAN> in spending on mental health care, according to the Speedy Foundation, named for Olympian <SPAN id=misspell-36 class=mark>Jeret</SPAN> “Speedy” Peterson, who had a history of depression and took his life in 2011.<BR><BR>After the <SPAN id=misspell-37 class=mark>Epperly</SPAN> report, <SPAN id=misspell-38 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> called on residents to ask lawmakers for more funding for mental health services. <SPAN id=misspell-39 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN> testified before the Legislature a couple of years ago supporting a tax increase on beer and wine to help pay for programs.<BR><BR>The chief
also wants people to take responsibility and recognize when someone close to them is in crisis.<BR><BR>His officers see the results when that <SPAN id=misspell-40 class=mark>doesn</SPAN>’t happen.<BR><BR>“I’<SPAN id=misspell-41 class=mark>ve</SPAN> had officers who have pleaded with people until their voices were hoarse, only to have people shoot themselves in the officer’s presence,” said <SPAN id=misspell-42 class=mark>Masterson</SPAN>. “We like to think there’s a tough veneer. But it takes a toll. Officers question themselves, ask themselves what they might have done.”<BR><BR>-----------------------------------<BR><BR><SPAN id=misspell-43 class=mark>Esto</SPAN> <SPAN id=misspell-44 class=mark>Perpetua</SPAN>, Idaho.<BR><BR>Tom Hansen<BR>Moscow, Idaho<BR><BR>"We're a town of about 23,000 with 10,000 college students. The college students are not very active in local elections (thank goodness!)."<BR><BR>- Dale Courtney (March 28,
2007)</div></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal><BR>=======================================================<BR> List services made available by First Step Internet,<BR> serving the communities of the <SPAN id=misspell-45 class=mark>Palouse</SPAN> since 1994.<BR> <A href="http://www.fsr.net/" rel=nofollow target=_blank><A href="http://www.fsr.net/" rel=nofollow target=_blank>http://www.fsr.net/</A></A><BR> <SPAN id=misspell-46 class=mark>mailto</SPAN>:<A href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com"><A href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" rel=nofollow target=_blank ymailto="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">Vision2020@moscow.com</A></A><BR>=======================================================</div></DIV>
<div class=yiv1935256937MsoNormal> </div></DIV>
<div>Notice: This e-mail, including attachments, is covered by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2510-2521, is confidential and may be legally privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any retention, dissemination, distribution, or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. Please reply to the sender that you have received the message in error, and delete it. Thank you.</div>
<div> </div></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV></DIV><BR>=======================================================<BR>List services made available by First Step Internet,<BR>serving the communities of the <SPAN id=misspell-47 class=mark>Palouse</SPAN> since 1994.<BR> <A href="http://www.fsr.net/" target=_blank>http://www.fsr.net/</A><BR> <SPAN id=misspell-48 class=mark>mailto</SPAN>:<A href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" ymailto="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">Vision2020@moscow.com</A><BR>=======================================================<BR><BR></DIV></DIV></div></body></html>