[BoulderCouncilHotline] Re: Questions about proposed CART program

[Schwartz, Wendy]

Dear Matt,

Thank you for your questions. I have included our responses in blue below, and we're also happy to discuss these issues tonight at the study session.

Best,
Wendy

Wendy Schwartz
Human Services Policy Manager
Reimagine Policing<https://bouldercolorado.gov/police/reimagine-policing> Project Manager
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Dear Community Members, Staff and Council Colleagues,


I greatly appreciate Councilmember Speer's thoughtful Hotline.

I wanted to ask staff a few questions and point out some concerns I have that may help steer our conversation tomorrow before we get into too much detail.


  *   Why are we limiting the scope and modifying the criteria of the CART program?
     *   This Council was very clear that we wanted to copy/mimic the successful programs in Denver (STAR) and Eugene (CAHOOTS). So why are we changing many of the known characteristics of these programs for our CART program?
        *   Example:
           *   "Criteria for CART pilot dispatch include circumstances that do not involve crime..."
              *   There are several technical crimes that CART should be responding to including but not limited to:
                 *   Trespassing
                 *   Use of Blanket outside to keep someone warm
                 *   Alcohol, Marijuana, and other drug use in public
                 *   Etc...



        *   Instead of the "not involve crime" criteria I would suggest moving to a "include circumstances that involve low level crime" as a more impactful criterion.
           *   There is a plethora of lower-level crimes that would see improved outcomes without the intervention of police.
        *   If we more closely mimic the STAR and CAHOOTS programs, we could more efficiently implement the CART program and leverage their best practices and training tools.

We believe situations such as those you reference above can be appropriately triaged for the right response - which may include a resource like CART - and will be getting legal input to clarify options for response on these types of scenarios. With that input we will refine dispatch protocols as appropriate.


     *   Hours of Operation
        *   Other than financial and/or staff resources, are there any other reasons why CARTs proposed hours of operation are 9am-7pm? I believe that that the STAR program operates from 6am-10pm. Do our calls/responses to crisis intervention align with the proposed hours of operation?

The proposed hours for the CART pilot are based on times of highest projected program demand demonstrated in analysis of potential CART calls, as well as consideration of the project's status as a pilot program. There are also some differences in comparing the situations of CART and STAR because STAR is located in a larger city with a significantly higher call volume.


  *   The language we use matters
     *   I see much, if not all the focused response of the CART teams being centered around issues created by and/or exacerbated by public health needs and poverty. I would like to see this be what our focused root causes are rather than the elimination of crime. It elevates the work from criminalization to recovery/treatment.


We agree that the issues leading to CART response are rooted in broader community challenges related to health, poverty and other social issues and are happy to talk about any language concerns you have.


  *   Folding case management into the CART program
     *   I generally like this comprehensive linkage of routing people from their time of crisis to longer term support. I am concerned that launching the CART program with this built in may add complexities and pull resources from the core of a crisis intervention program.
     *   Perhaps we fold in the case management linkage after some time when we have a better sense of what we are doing and can see how well or not we are doing at the foundational crisis intervention aspect of the program.
     *   I feel that this level of case management is more squarely in the jurisdiction of the county. Is the county prepared to support the CART program with resources to link this level of case management?

We believe we can prevent some people from continuing to cycle through 911, emergency health services, etc. and improve health outcomes, with the right case management. It will be possible for CART to refer people to other community resources that include case management, and that is done now by CIRT, but without team case management there will be a greater risk of that person getting "lost in the navigation" between programs.

You offer an important point about evaluating the need for case management after implementing the crisis response program. We were able to learn through experience on this issue with the CIRT program. A little over a year into CIRT implementation we realized a need for additional support and added a case manager to the team. The team noticed a difference almost immediately in the ability to help clients access services and provide community case managers in other organizations with important information about an individual's circumstances due to the unique nature of our team's work out in the community.

In addition, it might not be possible to contact a case manager at another agency during a crisis response. A case manager associated with CIRT/CART teams can follow up with the client when they are able to give informed consent, and connect the dots with other community service providers with a Release of Information.

STAR materials about the program state "Additional case management support can be utilized to tap into support and system navigation post crisis."

Finally, input from people working on the front lines of crisis service provision (CIRT team, health care safety net) strongly recommends case management as part of the program because they see the challenges when people fall through the cracks after the initial crisis response. When we have integrated case management, the crisis clinicians can give a clear appraisal of a time frame for follow up and what the person in crisis can expect. In our current program, the CIRT case manager sometimes accompanies clinicians to calls, which also creates direct contact and a familiar face for follow up. For a person in crisis - particularly when that crisis is related to a missing resource or confusion about how to navigate the situation - being able to tell them that this particular person (who we can name) will be contacting you tomorrow and can help you work with x issue can de-escalate the situation and sometimes prevent a trip to the hospital because they know a need will be met in a short time frame.
While we have discussed CART with Boulder County, we have not talked about the specific question you ask above about them supporting case management, but are happy to follow up as needed.


  *   Using 911
     *   One well known issue with STAR is the use of 911. Many folks are apprehensive to call 911 for what they feel is a non-emergency. It may be worth considering an alternative/complimentary number for people to use other than 911. People may feel better call this alternative number for issues involving someone pooping in the park, doing drugs by the creek, etc...I don't think we should do this as part of the launch, just flagging it as this is an issue the STAR program is working through, we may want to address this down the road.

CART will also be accessible through the Police Department non-emergency dispatch line: 303-441-3333.

In Eugene, the direct phone number to reach CAHOOTS is the same phone number as the Eugene Police non-emergency line.

I would like us to cast a wide net with the adoption of CART and let the data and knowledge gained from this program help further refine the program.


With gratitude,

Matt
**********

Matt Benjamin
Boulder City Council Member
(303) 453-9896
Pronouns: he/him/his




From: Benjamin, Matthew <BenjaminM at bouldercolorado.gov>
Sent: Wednesday, December 7, 2022 2:30 PM
To: HOTLINE <HOTLINE at bouldercolorado.gov>
Subject: [BoulderCouncilHotline] Questions about proposed CART program

Dear Community Members, Staff and Council Colleagues,


I greatly appreciate Councilmember Speer's thoughtful Hotline.

I wanted to ask staff a few questions and point out some concerns I have that may help steer our conversation tomorrow before we get into too much detail.


  *   Why are we limiting the scope and modifying the criteria of the CART program?
     *   This Council was very clear that we wanted to copy/mimic the successful programs in Denver (STAR) and Eugene (CAHOOTS). So why are we changing many of the known characteristics of these programs for our CART program?
        *   Example:
           *   "Criteria for CART pilot dispatch include circumstances that do not involve crime..."
              *   There are several technical crimes that CART should be responding to including but not limited to:
                 *   Trespassing
                 *   Use of Blanket outside to keep someone warm
                 *   Alcohol, Marijuana, and other drug use in public
                 *   Etc...
        *   Instead of the "not involve crime" criteria I would suggest moving to a "include circumstances that involve low level crime" as a more impactful criterion.
           *   There is a plethora of lower-level crimes that would see improved outcomes without the intervention of police.
        *   If we more closely mimic the STAR and CAHOOTS programs, we could more efficiently implement the CART program and leverage their best practices and training tools.
     *   Hours of Operation
        *   Other than financial and/or staff resources, are there any other reasons why CARTs proposed hours of operation are 9am-7pm? I believe that that the STAR program operates from 6am-10pm. Do our calls/responses to crisis intervention align with the proposed hours of operation?
  *   The language we use matters
     *   I see much, if not all the focused response of the CART teams being centered around issues created by and/or exacerbated by public health needs and poverty. I would like to see this be what our focused root causes are rather than the elimination of crime. It elevates the work from criminalization to recovery/treatment.

  *   Folding case management into the CART program
     *   I generally like this comprehensive linkage of routing people from their time of crisis to longer term support. I am concerned that launching the CART program with this built in may add complexities and pull resources from the core of a crisis intervention program.
     *   Perhaps we fold in the case management linkage after some time when we have a better sense of what we are doing and can see how well or not we are doing at the foundational crisis intervention aspect of the program.
     *   I feel that this level of case management is more squarely in the jurisdiction of the county. Is the county prepared to support the CART program with resources to link this level of case management?
  *   Using 911
     *   One well known issue with STAR is the use of 911. Many folks are apprehensive to call 911 for what they feel is a non-emergency. It may be worth considering an alternative/complimentary number for people to use other than 911. People may feel better call this alternative number for issues involving someone pooping in the park, doing drugs by the creek, etc...I don't think we should do this as part of the launch, just flagging it as this is an issue the STAR program is working through, we may want to address this down the road.




I would like us to cast a wide net with the adoption of CART and let the data and knowledge gained from this program help further refine the program.


With gratitude,

Matt
**********

Matt Benjamin
Boulder City Council Member
(303) 453-9896
Pronouns: he/him/his

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