Vangie Castro: We need more psychologists on the Rochester Police Department

During the town hall addressing race and policing, Chief Franklin and Mayor Norton both supported the current training and procedures Rochester Police Department (RPD) officers go through. The Mayor was adamant they will not defund the police department. However, there is a national and local outcry for reform in policing and it’s the City’s responsibility to ensure all Rochester residents feel safe and secure.

Recently, there was a report showing the rising number of calls RPD responds to which involve people who are experiencing a mental health crisis. The Post Bulletin after a year of requesting video from RPD pieced together the night Albert Dashow had died in police custody. I talked with a friend who is retired law enforcement and they watched the videos. They believe if the officer was better trained in assessing the situation when a person is experiencing a mental health crisis maybe instead of restraining Albert, the officer would have figured out how to get him home safely.

It comes down to both training and hiring. We may consider not filling positions when RPD officers retire with more officers but reinvesting those funds to bring on board more clinical psychologists that can train and partner with an officer to assess mental health crisis on the fly. Currently RPD has one forensic social worker on the force. Adding this new position has lowered the number of recurring calls from the same people experiencing a mental health crisis. This shows that dealing with non-violent people with compassion, empathy, and resources can be effective. Crime will happen but I think it’s ultimately our responsibility to change how law enforcement polices our community. We need both political will and public support to move towards bold and innovative solutions if we genuinely want to address bias and institutional racism in the police department. 

Vangie Castro is a Rochester resident who has worked on bias and prejudice reduction with the Diversity Council from 2011 – 2017. They are currently running for Rochester City Council President and has been a community organizer and plays on the Willow Creek Golf League on Wednesday nights. You can contact Vangie at vangie@vangiecastro.com.

This submission is part of a forum on race and policing in Rochester.