§ 42-28.2-8.3. Educational requirements - National certified mental health first aid training. (a) The commission on standards and training shall prepare and publish mandatory training standards to provide instructions for police officers in identifying and handling of complaints involving mental health/substance abuse emergencies, and victims, witnesses, or suspects with mental illness or substance use disorders and shall develop guidelines for law enforcement responses to incidents involving such persons. The course of instruction shall comply with the certified National Council of Behavioral Health Mental Health First Aid Program (MHFA) for law enforcement. Instruction and the guidelines shall include:

(1) Identifying and recognizing mental illness or substance use disorders for the benefit of victims and witnesses, the availability of civil remedies and community resources for persons experiencing mental health emergencies, and the protection of persons with mental illness or substance use disorders and for law enforcement officers engaging such persons;

(2) Providing information to law enforcement officers to recognize the signs and symptoms of common mental illnesses and substance use disorders, de-escalating crisis situations safely, and initiating timely referral to mental health and substance abuse resources available in the community.

(b) The commission shall include training in all curricula for recruits and in-service trainees, in all police academies operating or certified by the commission. All law enforcement trainees shall be certified by the National Council of Behavioral Health in Mental Health First Aid.

(c) All law enforcement trainees shall participate in the course of basic training for law enforcement officers, established in this section, as part of their required certification process.

(d) Training presenters shall include behavioral health practitioners with expertise in the delivery of direct services to individuals experiencing mental health or substance abuse emergencies and victims, witnesses, and suspects with mental illness and consumer-survivors i.e. individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders. Training presentations may utilize the staff of community-based mental health treatment facilities.

(e) The course of instruction, the learning and performance objectives, the standards for training, and the guidelines shall be developed by the municipal police training committee in consultation with groups and individuals having an interest and expertise in the field of mental health and community-based treatment.

(f) The municipal police training committee periodically shall include within its in-service training curriculum a course of instruction on handling complaints from or against persons with mental illness or substance use disorders, consistent with the provisions of subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2).

(g) As used in this section, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings:

(1) "Law enforcement officer" shall mean any officer of a municipal police department or a department of the state.

(2) "Consumer-survivor" shall mean any individual suffering from mental health disability or substance abuse disorder.

History of Section. (P.L. 2016, ch. 93, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 103, § 1.)