WaitForItTheMongols t1_j504phm wrote on January 19, 2023 at 2:00 PM

Reply to comment by mowhozart in Following police shooting of Sayed Faisal, renewed calls to fund mental health response team by ArachnidGlittering34

You're quite right, the whole country is a mess when it comes to mental health and it would be great if our city could lead the way on making things better.

mowhozart t1_j50604p wrote on January 19, 2023 at 2:10 PM

An unarmed response to mental health calls seems like a tragedy waiting to happen. A non-violent situation could easily turn the other way quickly. A Co-Response would be much safer.

I think the city has great services if one seeks them out. No one is talking about this young man’s history. Was this the first episode? Was he suffering from some undiagnosed mental illness?

WaitForItTheMongols t1_j509a69 wrote on January 19, 2023 at 2:34 PM

> I think the city has great services if one seeks them out. No one is talking about this young man’s history. Was this the first episode? Was he suffering from some undiagnosed mental illness?

Can we expect a person who is experiencing mental illness (and therefore lacking reliable mental function) to identify that for themselves and seek out resources?

mowhozart t1_j50agq4 wrote on January 19, 2023 at 2:42 PM

Maybe - or maybe the family he was living with could’ve. Is it reasonable to think that a 20 year old, otherwise healthy person had his first mental health episode and went right to cutting himself, running around the neighborhood with a machete then charging at police? Or were there earlier signs that the family missed or ignored? Both are possible.

magnetmonopole t1_j50ehas wrote on January 19, 2023 at 3:09 PM

Tbh, the answer here is that some people need to have help forced on them. Same goes for people dealing with severe drug addiction. Frequently, people dealing with these issues are unable or unwilling to seek out the help they need. We cannot just assume that everyone has family or a support network. Forcing treatment on people isn’t a pretty solution, but it may help some people who wouldn’t otherwise receive any treatment.