December 19, 2023

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm Eastern

Police: Managing Risk by Embedding Mental Health Co-responders in Police Departments

As communities across the country continue to examine ways to improve outcomes and reduce the costs of interactions between police officers and individuals experiencing mental illness, many have adopted a risk management approach.  This presentation will examine the potential benefits of embedding mental health co-responders within police departments.  The potential benefits include increasing the safety of those involved in such encounters; helping ensure that people experiencing mental illness are directed to the most appropriate resources; decreasing the number of police encounters with such individuals; reducing the costs associated with these encounters (including litigation costs); and improving the speed with which problems associated with these encounters are solved.

Speakers: Doug Hoffer

Douglas Hoffer is the Deputy City Attorney for the City of Eau Claire, Wisconsin.  He has worked in the Eau Claire City Attorney’s office since 2013 after working in private practice focusing on local government law.  He has successfully argued cases in Wisconsin circuit courts, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and the United States Supreme Court in cases involving constitutional law, civil procedure, land use, and municipal finance.  He is an IMLA Local Government Fellow and a 2010 graduate of Marquette Law School.