Newtown police officers complete crisis intervention training

Pictured from left to right: Officer Grinberg, Captain Harris and Officer Ditri. (Courtesy of Newtown Police Department)

NEWTOWN – In an effort to better serve our community, we recently sent Officers Ditri and Grinberg through Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training. CIT is an innovative first responder model of police crisis intervention with community, behavioral health and advocacy partnerships.

The program was first developed in Memphis about twenty years ago and has spread throughout the country.

CIT is a prison diversion program designed to improve the outcomes of police interactions with individuals whose behavior is influenced by mental illness, substance use and related medical conditions.

Officers learn to recognize psychiatric distress and other illnesses and de-escalate a crisis – preventing officer injuries, consumer deaths and community tragedies. Additionally, CIT officers learn how to connect people to appropriate treatment, which has a positive impact on promoting recovery and reducing relapse.

Research has shown that CIT training reduces arrests, use of force, injuries to citizens and police officers, and hospitalizations, and significantly improves the safety and satisfaction of all involved.

Source: CRIMEWATCH