Marcus Alert aims to give first responders more tools for mental health calls

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — In December 2019, 43-year-old Hank Berry called 911 to ask police to investigate whether his son, who he'd recently lost custody of, was being physically abused. Shortly after police arrived, he was killed by a single gunshot.

Berry had called 911 repeatedly that day. John Fletcher, who represented his family in a civil suit against the police, said that Berry was never diagnosed with a mental illness, but had exhibited strange, paranoid behavior in the months before he was killed.

"I don't know what you would call that, but clearly, he was having a mental health crisis of some sort," Fletcher told 10 On Your Side in an interview.

He believes that if police had better options to deal with cases like this, lives could be saved.

"Two of the police officers knew very well that he was having mental health issues," Fletcher said. "This was not a situation where police are reacting to a dangerous, violent criminal. Hank Berry was not a danger to anyone — he was just confused and, at worst, was not obeying an earlier command by the police to stop calling 911.

"It would have been an ideal place for a mental health professional, in my opinion."

Across the Commonwealth, localities are trying to improve how they respond to mental health-related emergencies.

Such calls can be especially dangerous for the very people first responders are called to assist. Almost a quarter of police-involved shootings involved an incident associated with mental or behavioral crisis, according to a recent Johns Hopkins study .

In 2020, The Marcus-David Peters Act was signed into law — named after a beloved black science teacher who was killed by Richmond Police while experiencing a mental health crisis in 2018.

The legislation aimed to address the hard truth that police had become the de facto response for mental and behavioral health crises.

It created the Marcus Alert, which requires that trained professionals respond to mental health calls alongside, or, instead of, police. The law also facilitates coordination between 911 and regional crisis call centers.

Localities have until 2028 to implement the Marcus Alert, though some have already instituted the full program, including Virginia Beach, Hampton, Newport News and Suffolk.

In Newport News, there are two entities that can respond to a Marcus Alert: the CARE team , which is affiliated with the Newport News Fire Department, and the Crisis Response Team which is affiliated with the Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board (HNNCSB). The Crisis Response Team also responds to calls in Hampton.

One of the tools widely used by police prior to the new law was the emergency custody order (ECO), which allows them to take a person into custody if they believe that person is suffering from a mental health crisis and may harm themselves or someone else.

Connie Vatsa, the Marcus Alert coordinator for HNNCSB, told us that with their new options, they've only had to file ECOs in less than 15% of mental health emergency cases.

Her team recently dealt with one such call in which a man was experiencing suicidal ideations.

"Historically, officers would have initiated the ECO [by] taking him to the hospital for an assessment," Vatsa told 10 On Your Side. "But we were able to respond out with officers, and, because my staff were able to do a full assessment with that individual about exactly where they were in terms of their suicidal ideation [and] their risk factors, [we] developed a safety plan to address what was going on and be able to connect them to services.

"We were able to help that individual stay in the community rather than having to go to the hospital and having the officers initiate that emergency custody order."

Emergency managers use a four-tier system to ensure an appropriate response is initiated:

"When it comes to our level two and level three, the clinicians are usually dealing with the people that are having these crises; law enforcement — we are now there to assist." said Capt. Rebecca Warren, deputy commander of professional standards with Hampton Police.

"Level 4 is those eminent response situations where police are needed," she said. "This is an imminent threat to life and safety. Police still need to be involved in those situations."

Police and mental health professionals on the Peninsula who work with the Marcus Alert agree it's changing policing for the better and saving lives.

Crisis Intervention Training

Crisis Intervention Training is another critical part of the law.

"It's a 40-hour training that gives officers more information than they would receive in just their academy about mental health strategies for how to engage with individuals who are experiencing behavioral health crises to safely resolve that situation," Vatsa said.

In Hampton and Newport News, more than half of the officers in each department are trained.

"Having our officers CIT-trained, it really helps with the situation a lot," Vatsa told 10 On Your Side. "It really helps when it comes to de-escalating the situation; it really helps with the way that they speak with the individual; it really helps the individuals calm down a lot.

"That is where we need them to be — that helps the officers too, to help them deal with the situation and to help them get them the help that they need."

The Virginia Beach Police Department and the Virginia Beach Department of Human Services, in a statement, outlined their use of the Marcus Alert.

"The Marcus Alert is a collaborative crisis response tool used by our public safety teams and Human Services," a statement from VBPD and the city's Department of Human Services reads. "It is a statewide mental health framework designed to ensure behavioral health experts are involved in responding to individuals in crisis. Since its implementation, the City has increased the number of mobile behavioral health clinicians responding to citizens in crisis in the community. This has resulted in diverting them away from the criminal justice system and instead to resources and supports for treatment and recovery.

"As far as the Virginia Beach Police Department goes, the department has leaned heavily on the Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) and the Crisis Intervention Training that officers received. VBPD has also utilized the Regional 988 as a resource for individuals that don't reach the level of custodial detainment."

The Eastern Shore

On the Eastern Shore, the implementation of the Marcus Alert is being handled regionally. The Eastern Shore of Virginia 9-1-1 Commission, Accomack County Sheriff's Office, Chincoteague Police Department and Northampton County Sheriff's Office have worked together to create a local database. People can share important mental health information such as their name, emergency contact, medications, diagnoses, et cetera, for dispatchers to share with emergency responders if there is a call from the number associated with the information. People can submit this information using Smart 9-1-1.

Other aspects of the Marcus Alert are still in progress, though they do have until 2028 to get it all up and running.

Chesapeake was the first voluntary agency to implement the Marcus Alert in the Commonwealth in December 2022.

Gloucester has been referring calls to 988 since April, though a spokesperson said there have only been a few referrals.

Matthews County

Matthews County has partnered with the Middle Peninsula Counseling Center for their response and is referring calls to 988.

New Kent

New Kent refers the required calls to 988 and most of the officers are CIT-trained. It has partnered with Henrico to implement a mobile crisis team.