Baltimore approves new agency to respond to mental health crises, nonviolent 911 calls

The Baltimore City Council has approved a measure establishing a new Department of Neighborhood Safety (DNS), a public agency designed to respond to nonviolent crises across the city.

The council held its final vote Monday on the measure, which will formalize the work of the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE).

City leaders say the new department will employ mental health clinicians and peer responders trained to handle nonviolent emergencies. It would have equal standing with the city's police and fire departments.

However, questions remain about how the department will be funded long term and how it will coordinate with existing emergency response systems.

"No one should lose their life to a mental health crisis," Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen said. "The Department of Neighborhood Safety will exist to ensure Baltimoreans get the right response at the right time when they call for help. Too often, we have asked police to do the jobs of clinicians and peers when responding to non-violent calls. When fully implemented, this department will allow our officers to focus on reducing violent crime, while mental health professionals urgently respond to residents in distress."

The Baltimore City Firefighters Union supports the department but has raised concerns about potential costs and the impact on already limited fire and emergency medical services resources.

"Diverting certain calls does not automatically reduce the cost of maintaining an emergency response system that must remain operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," the union said in a statement.

How much will the department cost?

City officials say initial funding will come from Baltimore's opioid settlement, but the department's long-term costs remain unclear.

In September, Mayor Brandon Scott acknowledged that establishing the agency would require city funding.

"Obviously it's going to involve city funds. We're going to have to stand up a completely new agency, but that's why we're going to do this the right way and not rush it," Scott said.

According to a news release from the mayor's office, $3.4 million in opioid restitution funds will support the initial planning phase, along with $1 million in federal funding to expand alternative response team capabilities.

How would the department respond to 911 calls?

Last month, the mayor's office said about 22,000 calls to 911 each year could be handled more appropriately by alternative responders rather than police.

Those calls include reports of loitering, welfare checks and requests for help involving people experiencing homelessness. The city estimates that homelessness-related calls account for roughly one-third of that total.

Scott said the goal is to allow police officers to focus on violent crime and firearms while trained alternative responders handle crises that do not require law enforcement.

"This is about making sure that we are not sending folks with lights and sirens and guns and badges to something they don't need to be," Scott said.

"What our residents want the police to be doing is what they should be focused on—people with guns, gun traffickers, groups of violent people," he added. "Our residents do not want the police out there dealing with something they're not the most equipped to do. This is what this is about for us. Nothing else."

The new department will also formally incorporate MONSE, the city's violence-prevention office. City leaders have credited the office's efforts as one factor contributing to a historic decline in homicides.