NYPD trains officers on involuntary hospitalizations.
Internal NYPD documents obtained by the New York Civil Liberties Union reveal that patrol officers are receiving brief training on situations that may warrant involuntary hospitalization of individuals with mental illness. The training was prepared to brief officers on Mayor Eric Adams’ recent directive that people may be forced to undergo psychiatric evaluation when a mental illness is seemingly preventing them from meeting their own basic needs, putting them at risk of harm. Civil rights advocates have criticized police involvement in implementing Adams’ directive in light of numerous instances of people in a mental health crisis being killed or seriously injured by NYPD officers.