JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A violent weekend in Jacksonville has put a spotlight on mental health and policing.
It is common for police to respond to calls involving a person with mental health issues. Often, we see these cases can escalate quickly and put the officers, other people and the person themselves at risk.
We want to know what can be done to help people before it gets to this point.
Let’s start with Saturday.
Video shows police standing over a man they just shot and Tased in San Marco.
The man was seen stabbing himself and a News4JAX photographer witnessed it.
Police said he was shot after he raised a knife toward them and didn’t listen to their commands.
JSO said the man had been Baker Acted three times. That’s three times officials had custody of a person with a mental health issues and it still led to what happened Saturday.
News4JAX Crime and Safety Expert Tom Hackney is a former JSO Director and we asked him if he thinks the mental health system is doing enough to help people.
“Between police and corrections, they’re one of the highest levels of mental health providers in the country, and that really shouldn’t be the case. So, you know, does the system work? You know, it certainly didn’t work Saturday,” he said. “It’s very unfortunate, their training allows for as much care as they can. But they also have a duty and responsibility to protect the community at large and then themselves.”
On Sunday, police said a 22-year-old shot and killed his father, his 12-year-old brother, and shot his mother several times, before killing himself.
His family told police of prior mental health issues though police said they never had contact with him for his mental health.
Dr. Justin D’Arienzo, a forensic psychologist, described a perfect storm: some kind of grievance, a crisis, and a mental health problem makes people more likely to commit a violent crime.
“The issue is that humans suffer from wishful thinking and denial like people think that things will never happen in my family, my loved one would never commit such an act, even if they made threats. So often people avoid calling the police or calling a mental health professional to seek services,” D’Arienzo said.
In April 2020, a woman stabbed a police officer after she called 911. The woman was shot and killed by another officer.
MORE: Mother of woman killed in police shooting calls for more mental health resources
Her mother said she fought different hospitals to get the help her daughter desperately needed.
“We have a problem with access of care, a problem with quality services. And we also have the problem of people wanting to protect their loved ones themselves, rather than forcing their loved ones to get help. It’s about educating people, it’s about removing the stigma,” D’Arienzo said.
D’Arienzo also said don’t ignore the warning signs and to get police or mental health professionals involved to find out the best way to handle the situation.