Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion

Grantee contacted BJA and on 2/26 CHJ received email from our policy advisor regarding a request received by Elizabeth White: "has reached out to me with questions concerning sources of foundation funding and general advice on implementing LEAD programs." CHJ reached out to grantee and scheduled a call for 3/3.

Lieutenant Herring asked for resources to compare their coordinator position responsibilities and pay to comparable positions throughout the Country.

Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office contacted CHJ via email requesting information on the technical and training assistance CHJ offers and how our services can assist her organization.

The Law Enforcement/First Responder Diversion and Referral Mentoring Initiative provides communities interested in starting diversion or referral programs the opportunity to learn from established or innovative programs that have shown success in meeting the treatment needs of individuals with a substance use disorder, and in some cases an overdose. Seven sites have been chosen to act as mentors for newer programs that are trying to establish a first responder diversion program.

The Law Enforcement/First Responder Diversion and Referral Mentoring Initiative provides communities interested in starting diversion and/or referral programs the opportunity to learn from established or innovative programs that have shown success in meeting the treatment needs of individuals with a substance use disorder, and in some cases an overdose. There are seven sites that have been chosen to act as mentors for newer programs that are trying to establish a first responder diversion program.

The grant manager at Madison Police Department contacted CHJ requesting information on to complete the PMT report for BJA. Specifically, they wanted to know how to respond to a question with data points that were not identified in their grant application.

Arkansas Rural Health Partnership submitted a TA request for information on law enforcement officer first responder diversion training for their mobile crisis unit. The site also wanted information on training curriculum for officers.

CHJ invited practitioners who are experts in the field of diversion to be part of the First Responder Led Diversion Training Curriculum Advisory Panel. Their work on this panel will lead to the development of the first training curriculum for First Responder Led Diversion for individuals with severe opioid or substance abuse disorders. The advisory panel will serve a vital role in guiding the field of law enforcement, and first responder led diversion. The goal is to develop a training curriculum that could serve as a core curriculum for first responder agencies.

The purpose of this workshop is to present the fundamentals of case management with an emphasis on creating additional support for individuals with an opioid use disorder referred from first responders. This workshop will cover the critical role CM can play in diversion by linking people from first responders to treatment and recovery by bridging the communication gap between the criminal justice and behavioral health systems.

Recognizing that law enforcement and first responders are at the front line of the opioid epidemic, frequently responding to drug overdose calls, a variety of multidisciplinary overdose response and early diversion models have emerged in communities throughout the nation. These models often include first responders working in partnership with behavioral health treatment providers and the peer recovery community to help overdose victims access treatment and services.