| Description |
The Burke/Catawba Crisis Intervention Team provides CIT Training and Services to the counties of Burke and Catawba, North Carolina. The purpose of the Burke/Catawba Crisis Intervention Team is to provide the resources for law enforcement agencies to ensure that understanding and skills exist, through specific training, to identify needs and to provide the most effective and compassionate response in situations involving a behavioral crisis. The core values of this program include: 1) community partnerships shall exist between law enforcement agencies, mental health and human service providers, consumers and families, 2) Mental illness will be approached as a disease rather than a crime, 3) non-jail solutions will be sought with appropriate, and 4) the mental health system will be responsive and supportive to law enforcement, employing available resources. The Burke/Catawba CIT is modeled after the Memphis program and follows the 40 hour curriculum providing an intensive training tool for local law enforcement officers. The first CIT class for Burke/Catawba was held in Hickory, NC in June 2008 and graduated 18 officers from five departments. A second class is in planning for September 2008 to be held in Morganton, NC.
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