For an extensive period, law enforcement has been at the forefront of responding to mental health crises in Toronto. However, the police chief of Toronto, Myron Demkiw, is now advocating for a reevaluation of this approach. In an interview with CBC Toronto, Chief Demkiw proposed a reexamination of Mobile Crisis Intervention Teams (MCITs).
The MCIT program, initiated in 2000, involves pairing officers with a nurse to handle mental health crisis calls. Demkiw now suggests that the involvement of police in such situations should be reassessed. He proposed a shift where mental health calls, being health-related, should primarily be led by the health sector, with police involvement limited to ensuring safety.
In recent years, there has been a push to expand the MCIT program due to a rising need for resources to prevent tragic outcomes in mental health crisis calls. Incidents involving individuals in crisis, such as the deaths of Ejaz Choudry, D’Andre Campbell, and Regis Korchinski-Paquet, have underscored the importance of addressing mental health crises effectively.
The Toronto Police Service announced a review of the MCIT program in November to explore alternative responses, particularly for non-violent mental health calls. The program, currently operational in 16 city divisions, comprises 25 police officers and 35 mental health nurses from partnering healthcare networks and hospitals.
Amid ongoing consultations about the MCIT program, questions have arisen regarding its necessity following the establishment of the Toronto Community Crisis Service (TCCS) in 2022. While some advocate for collaboration between the two programs, others, like Susan Davis of the Gerstein Crisis Centre, support reduced police involvement in mental health crises.
The TCCS, which has handled over 38,000 calls since its inception, focuses on responding to crisis situations without police presence. Dilya Neizova, from the city’s Alternative Safety Response Unit, highlighted that the majority of TCCS calls are resolved without the need for emergency services, with 78% of calls transferred from 911 being handled without police intervention.
If the TCCS were to replace the MCIT program fully, Davis emphasized the need for additional support and infrastructure to manage the potential increase in workload. The timeline for the potential discontinuation of the MCIT program by the police has not been disclosed.