Centralize Unarmed Response Now in LA

Angelenos strongly endorse unarmed models of crisis response, and both LA City and LA County are taking notice, building out and piloting services in a variety of geographies, toward the goal of city-wide implementation of unarmed crisis response services in the next 5-10 years.

While the need for comprehensive and effective unarmed crisis response services is great, a major barrier stands in the way of Angelenos benefiting from even currently-existing models: they don’t have an easy way to contact them. 

LA’s City Administrative Officer (CAO) recently noted that LA’s dispatch systems – currently housed under LAPD’s 9-1-1 system – have not been updated to make unarmed crisis response services easy to access: 

“[S]everal departments in the City of Los Angeles use their own Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) systems including the LAPD, LAFD, and Department of Transportation (DOT), and each unarmed response pilot program utilizes their own dispatch system. These different systems are not able to communicate with each other or send information between systems. When an emergency or non-emergency call is received at the City’s PSAP and it is transferred to other internal departments, the information has to be recreated with each transfer and the caller is asked the same question multiple times… significantly increasing call-wait times before callers can be connected to the appropriate unarmed response programs.” (Page 15)

They've named FOUR best practice policies to improve LA's access to these services. Read more about them below.

These best practices are now in LA City Councilmembers’ hands. Let’s urge them to make LA’s unarmed crisis response systems best-in-class. If this can happen in other cities, it can happen here!

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Four best practices outlined in the CAO’s Report:

  1. Centralize LA’s Unarmed Dispatch Center - “Due to the current decentralized unarmed response model, there are various unarmed response entities that 9-1-1 operators have to connect with. Streamlining these dispatch operations, to allow for one destination for 9-1-1 operators to transfer calls to would substantially increase efficiency.” 

  2. Centralize LA’s Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) System - “Using a single system allows cities to track the progression of a situation, individual and/or location from the initial call into the [dispatch center] to the organization providing wrap-around services.” 

  3. Centralize LA’s Radio Systems - “Other municipalities have also integrated their radio systems to allow for communication between multiple responders in the field. For example, Dayton, Ohio’s Mediation Response Unit (MRU) responders are able to communicate with public safety and medical dispatchers directly, request assignment of calls, and ask for additional resources from traditional first responders. In addition, police and fire personnel are able to request the response for MRU at certain calls… more appropriate for diversion.” 

  4. Relocate the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) - “Many other cities with unarmed response programs house their PSAP (i.e. 9-1-1 call center) outside of their police department. These cities have found that separating the 9-1-1 answering and triaging function from law enforcement agencies can support the streamlined integration of new diversion protocols, systems and personnel for alternative and unarmed crisis response programs. In addition, advocates believe that a PSAP unaffiliated with law enforcement can help foster broader trust in the 9-1-1 system — breaking the stigma of calls for assistance automatically resulting in the arrival of armed personnel.” (Page 16)

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