Bill Text: NJ A847 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires police training for interactions with persons who may have behavioral health issues.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee [A847 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A847-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman NICHOLAS CHIARAVALLOTI
District 31 (Hudson)
Assemblyman CLINTON CALABRESE
District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires police training for interactions with persons who may have behavioral health issues.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning police training and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New section) a. The Department of Law and Public Safety, in collaboration with the Department of Human Services, shall adopt or endorse a training curriculum for law enforcement officers concerning police interactions with persons with behavioral health issues, including persons who may have a mental illness, substance use disorder, or co-occurring diagnosis of mental illness and substance use disorder.
b. The curriculum shall include information on the recognition of behavioral symptoms, as well as de-escalation and intervention techniques. The curriculum shall include, but need not be limited to, the following subjects:
(1) identification and recognition of different forms of behavioral health disorders or issues;
(2) techniques for law enforcement to intervene with, interview, de-escalate, and assess a person who may have a mental illness or substance use disorder;
(3) issues relating to suicide and prevention techniques;
(4) recognition, identification, and understanding of the main effects of commonly prescribed prescription medications used to treat those who may have a behavioral health disorder;
(5) an overview of community resources and options for treatment, including identification of local resources;
(6) methods of determining appropriate treatment options and transfer thereto in collaboration with behavioral health entities; and
(7) standards utilized in this State for involuntary commitment to inpatient and outpatient treatment.
c. The Attorney General may issue guidelines or directives regarding the provision of this training to law enforcement officers.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month next following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Department of Law and Public Safety, in collaboration with the Department of Human Services, to establish a training program for law enforcement officers to educate those most likely to encounter persons in crisis about police interactions with persons with behavioral health issues.
The training program curriculum under the bill is to include information on identifying and recognizing different forms of behavioral health disorders or issues; techniques for intervening with, interviewing, de-escalating, and assessing a person who may have such a disorder; issues relating to suicide and prevention techniques; recognizing, identifying, and understanding the main effects of commonly prescribed prescription medications used to treat those who may have a behavioral health disorder; community resources and options for treatment, including identification of local resources; methods of determining appropriate treatment options; and standards utilized in this State for involuntary commitment to inpatient and outpatient treatment.
The Attorney General is authorized to issue guidelines or directives governing the law enforcement training required by the bill.
