A new working paper, published by researchers at the National Bureau of Economic Research, evaluates Durham, North Carolina’s HEART program, which diverts nonviolent 911 calls from police to mobile crisis response teams. The researchers found that “HEART reduces crime reports, arrests, and response times—primarily through civilian phone and in-person responses, rather than police-civilian co-responses,” and that it “is a fiscally self-sustainable intervention” that fosters public trust. The full paper is worth your time, but here are some key findings:
- Fewer Arrests, Faster Response: “Crime reports declined … over 50 percent relative to baseline, and arrests dropped … from a 5 percent baseline.” The study also found that “response times decreased for both program and police responses, but the decline is nearly twice as large for HEART responses.”
- Greater Trust And Engagement: Rather than discouraging 911 use, “HEART does not deter future calls… [residents] served by HEART generate slightly more follow-up calls than those served by police, yet this increased engagement does not translate into higher rates of violence.” This suggests “civilian teams handle emergencies without escalation and may encourage continued, constructive use of emergency services.”
- Self-Sustaining: “The average HEART response costs $1,191 but generates estimated fiscal savings of $2,093 per call… The resulting net savings of $902 per call… means that the program pays for itself through fiscal externalities.” They add that “95 percent of respondents report a positive willingness to pay for the program, with the mean valuation being $102.91 per year—more than eight times the program’s per-resident cost.”
- Frees Police To Focus On Serious Crimes: The authors found that “HEART reduces crime reports, arrests, and response times” and that these effects “are driven by the program itself rather than changes in enforcement behavior,” suggesting civilian teams are “diverting low-risk calls from the criminal legal system” so police can concentrate on higher-priority incidents.