Alternative response teams are an evidence-based public safety model that improves outcomes for those in crisis and saves the city money. There are two key reasons why an alternative response model would be a win-win for the City of Knoxville & the people who live here.

#1 IMPROVES OUTCOMES FOR THOSE IN CRISIS

Police responding to people experiencing a mental health crisis can create harm. People in crisis are more likely to be harmed or killed by an encounter with the police, and the presence of police can escalate crises and traumatize community members. Encounters with police can lead to the band-aid response of arrest and/or prison, while decreasing the safety of our entire community.

According to the Prison Policy Initiative, “people with multiple arrests have low rates of violence but serious medical and mental health needs gives new urgency to the growing concerns that jails have become “the de facto mental health care system in many communities,” and that police are often used to respond to medical and mental health problems, not to matters of public safety.”

One way to improve outcomes for people in crisis is to reduce the use of police in response to non-violent 911 calls. This reduces the risk of escalation, police brutality, and arrest, which are all things that negatively impact the physical and mental health of an individual. An alternative response team can respond more more effectively and safely with trauma-informed care.

QUICK FACTS

• People with serious mental health disorders are 16 times more likely than the general public to be killed during a police encounter. (source)

• The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) states “the mere presence of a law enforcement vehicle, an officer in uniform, and/or a weapon may be seen as a threat to a person in crisis and has the potential to escalate a situation.” (source)

• Our reliance on police INCREASES the occurrence of mental health crises. Victims of police violence experience increased suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and psychotic experiences. (source)
  
  

#2 SAVES THE CITY AND TAXPAYERS MONEY

CAHOOTS, an alternative response program in Eugene, OR, saves an estimated $8.5 million a year while responding to 17% of Eugene, Oregon’s Police Department’s overall calls. In 2019, CAHOOTS requested police backup only 150 times out of 24,000 calls, illustrating how crisis workers can successfully and safely respond to a broad range of non-violent calls. (source)

But how exactly does an alternative response program save money?

POLICE RESPONSE IS EXPENSIVE

Each time a first responder shows up in the field, it costs the city money. Police response is much more expensive than alternative response teams. Reducing need for police reduces their need for increased budgets and overtime payouts.

Let’s look at the exact numbers.

This graph from Albany Law School  shows the differences in cost per response between police and alternative response programs.

The data is clear. In Eugene, cost per police response is $486. Cost per alternative response is $86. That is a savings of $400 PER call. This type of savings is found across the board in cities with alternative models.

CAHOOTS estimates it saves the city $8.5 million per year in public safety costs by reducing the need for police response. They estimate another $14 million in ambulance trips and ER costs. What could the city of Knoxville do with just some of those savings? What if we had another $2-4 million we could re-invest into our communities? We’d be creating healthier, safer communities. 

POLICE OVERTIME COSTS KNOXVILLE MILLIONS & INCREASES LAWSUIT RISK

Reducing the burden on police by taking on a percentage of their 911 calls will help understaffing and overtime issues, which are both expensive and dangerous to everyone, including police officers.

The Knoxville Police Department claims to be chronically understaffed. As of Oct 2020, KPD had 45 open positions. In 2020, the city authorized $150,000 to be spent on branding and marketing to help with the recruitment problem. Understaffing led the department to pay for $2.1 million in overtime in 2018. 

Research is clear that police overtime has alarming consequences to both the city’s budget and the people they encounter. King County, Washington’s Sheriff’s Office found that an officer working only FOUR hours of overtime per week affected the following: 15.2% increased chance they will discharge a firearm, 13% increased chance of work-related car accident, 12.5% increased chance of a use-of-force incident, 7% increased chance of filing a workers’ compensation claim, and a 13% increased chance of an ethics violation.

While the obvious consequence of overtime is the extra cost in salary, the burnout and fatigue present in police officers also contributes to increased lawsuits, workers compensation, officer turnover, and early retirement.

Both the police officers, the city, and the people they encounter suffer when burnout and exhaustion runs rampant inside a police department. 

IN SUMMARY

In 2019, less than 2% of the calls KPD responded to were for violent crimes against persons (3,855 out of 275,121), showing an alternative response model could handle many of the 911 calls, improving outcomes and saving taxpayer money in Knoxville. (source)