Three Things To Read This Week

1. A Big Month For Crime Survivor Legislation

The Alliance for Safety and Justice, a policy advocacy organization powered by over 180,000 crime survivors, recently published a Twitter thread recapping some historic wins around the country for crime victims and their loved ones. 

Building on the thread, here’s a brief overview of vital legislation that’s passed around the country in recent weeks, which includes financial assistance for survivors to relocate to a safe place, mental health support, and funding for trauma recovery centers:

• In Arizona, Governor Doug Ducey signed HB 2594, which establishes a “Trauma Recovery Center Fund” that will direct funding to trauma recovery centers in the state that “are survivor-centered and focused on addressing the psychological and psychosocial impact of trauma, with primary goals to decrease psychosocial distress, minimize long-term disability, improve overall quality of life, reduce the risk of future victimization and promote post-traumatic growth.” 
  
  The legislation included a strong why statement that’s a solid model for other jurisdictions: 

“The State of Arizona is committed to providing for the welfare of crime victims [, including] timely and effective mental health treatment … Without treatment, approximately fifty percent of people who survive a traumatic, violent injury experience lasting or extended psychological or social difficulties. Untreated psychological trauma often has severe economic consequences, including overuse of costly medical services, loss of income, failure to return to gainful employment, loss of medical insurance and loss of stable housing.”

• In Illinois, lawmakers passed HB 2493 which expands eligibility for a 10-day leave of absence from work to grieve and make funeral arrangements for family members who have lost a loved one to violence. Yolanda Carter, a Chicago native who is a survivor of domestic violence, explained to The State Journal Register the importance of this kind of legislation: “Recovering from these traumatic events takes time… but often victims are forced to return to the workforce before they are truly ready, ‘it is simply wrong for survivors to risk losing their jobs when they are planning funerals and grieving the loss of the closest thing to them.’”

• In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB233, or Curtis’ Law, which requires law enforcement to provide basic information about the investigation of a homicide involving a child to the grieving family members. Patricia Ward, whose son Curtis—the namesake of the new law—was murdered at the age of 16, explained to The Florida Phoenix that she had to fight for years just to get basic information about his case, which only exacerbated her suffering and feelings of loss: “Ward said that it was during a period of pain and agony in grieving over his death that she ‘decided to turn pain into purpose’ and “wrote down the basic information I wish I had when my son was first killed…” That effort turned into this new law. 

• In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott signed SB49, which expands a crime victim compensation program. For example, the bill increases the amount of support for relocation costs, lifts the cap for lost wages for family members of a victim, and increases support for families taking a leave of absence from work as they grieve or make funeral arrangements. 

2. Spotlight On Excellent Television News Covering Behavioral Health Stabilization Units

As part of a multi-edition effort (here, here and here) to highlight compelling, fair, and informative local television news reporting, here is a must-watch segment on a behavioral health stabilization unit in Louisville, Kentucky:

• “New addiction stabilization unit bridges gap between emergency rooms and drug treatment.” For Louisville, Kentucky’s CBS affiliate, WLKY, Deni Camper reported on the city’s new addiction stabilization center, which is open 24/7 and staffed with healthcare workers and trained crisis counselors. The Center serves “people who are dealing with a combination of substance abuse issues and mental health problems”, giving them a place “to stabilize and develop a plan for treatment.” 

3. Mobile Crisis Response Teams Expanding Around The Country

• Harris County, Texas: “A pilot program that sends public health staff instead of police to respond to certain 911 calls is expanding…” For The Houston Chronicle, Michael Murney reports that the successful Holistic Alternative Responder Team program, or HART, is  getting a $2.6 million budget boost to expand its coverage area. The program, which launched last year and has already responded to nearly 2,500 calls for service, sends “interdisciplinary unarmed, first responder teams, trained in behavioral health and on-scene medical assistance” to calls for mental health-related calls. Lupe Washington, a division director with Harris County Public Health, told the Chronicle that HART “really is allowing our residents to get the help that’s needed, but also allowing our law enforcement partners to dedicate more time to the more violent calls that are going on in the community.” 

• Dayton, Ohio: “Mental health crisis response team expands with $3M in grant funding.” For NBC’s local affiliate, WDTN, KaJeza Hawkins and Callie Cassick reported that new federal funding will fuel the expansion of the city’s “mobile crisis center, which sends out trained professionals to crisis situations and lowers calls to law enforcement.” Major Chris Malson with the Dayton Police Department told WDTN that he’s “grateful” for the mobile crisis program “because it gets people in distress trained mental health support.” Major Malson continued: “I think mental health workers who respond to those that are in crisis provide a better response in some situations than law enforcement or other first responders can provide.”

• Bangor, Maine: “Bangor’s new ‘human service providers …address situations that don’t require a police response.’” Writing for The Bangor Daily News, Kathleen O'Brien details the “early indicators of success” for The Bangor Community Action Team, which is the brainchild of Bangor Police Chief Mark Hathaway, who saw a need for “an alternative and more appropriate response model.” Here’s more detail on the program from the Daily News:

“The team is composed of four trained human service providers who have experience with mental health disorders, addiction recovery and veterans issues… [and] is entirely separate from the police … [The team] can help someone access medical treatment, a detox center or other recovery service, enter a shelter, get a bus ticket, or make a phone call [, and] also ensures a person’s caseworker knows where they are and what happened. The new program’s role also allows police to stop responding to calls that don’t require law enforcement, allowing them to return to their traditional role [of solving crimes.]”