Mental health calls to Providence police skyrocketed in recent years

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A Target 12 review of Providence police data shows mental health incidents have risen nearly 200% in five years.

In late August, one of those incidents took place just inside the Providence Public Safety Complex on Washington Street.

"I think I'm gonna die," a man said to the desk sergeant on shift that morning, according to police body-worn camera video obtained by Target 12.

The video, from Officer Renaud Joseph, shows a man entering the lobby of police headquarters on Washington St. with a small satchel, and telling Joseph he believed he was being followed.

"What's in that bag?" Joseph asked.

"There's a knife," the man replied.

Joseph quickly was able to get the bag off of the man and removed two knives.

"It's alright, it's alright. You're not gonna die," Joseph said.

Soon Officer Mark DeCecco walked into the lobby and asked the man if he wanted to sit down. He told Joseph to radio for a rescue.

The man explained he found drugs on the street. "Want to take a deep breath for us?" DeCecco asked the man. "There you go. That's good, buddy."

DeCecco spoke with the man for about seven minutes while a rescue was on the way. The man agreed to go get checked out, and he was brought to the hospital.

"You're OK. You're safe," an EMT told the man.

As of mid-September, Providence Police responded to nearly 400 mental health incidents. Col. Oscar Perez said the way that police handle mental health incidents – or MHI's– is drastically different than in years past.

"Back in the '90s, back in the '80s, it was not realistic for officers when they responded to these calls that they needed to be psychologists and diffuse situations and realize there was mental illness," Perez said.

Perez said things really started to change when the police department began placing clinicians from The Providence Center — a mental health and addiction treatment provider — on shift to assist on providence police with MHI calls.

"This is part of the job, this is part of the training," Perez said.

The police department received a federal grant about two years ago, and Perez said all sworn officers were provided Integrated Communication Assessment and Tactics (ICAT) training, along with an annual refresher course.

"All our officers were trained on how to diffuse, deescalate, and identify a person that was suffering some sort of mental crisis," Perez said. "In the academy, we provide about 10 hours on how to handle vulnerable people."

Data reinforces the demand for the specialized training.

A Target 12 review of police data found MHI calls increased 179% from 2019 to 2023. Overall, police responded to 561 calls in 2023, compared to 464 in 2022, 420 in 2021, 339 in 2020 and 201 calls in 2019.

"The numbers have increased, but I truly feel that it's just awareness in the community, awareness of this happening and people wanting to provide them with the right help," Perez said. "I'm glad they're calling us."

If you or someone you know needs help, there are other resources available locally: