988: A Shared Opportunity
for Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health Partners
988: A Shared Opportunity
On July 16, 2022, the U.S. transitioned to 988—a 3-digit code for people to reach the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, creating a unique opportunity to rethink how people are connected to compassionate, accessible care. Communities around the country are now determining how this new, national dialing code works alongside existing law enforcement and crisis responses.
For criminal justice stakeholders, the transition to 988 is an important opportunity to shift people in crisis toward appropriate care, and help redesign crisis responses that, when implemented effectively, minimize contact with law enforcement and the justice system.
This project seeks to equip criminal justice leaders with information that supports their efforts to:
- Raise awareness of the services 988 provides;
- Build a shared vision of the opportunity 988 presents; and
- Coordinate with their 988 partners and other behavioral health crisis providers to appropriately direct people to 988 from first contact with law enforcement through reentry.
Pocket Card
Download the following pocket card as a resource for law enforcement officers.
Videos
The Council of State Governments Justice Center invited law enforcement and behavioral health partners from across the country to share their perspectives on law enforcement’s role in supporting 988 implementation in their communities. This video series aims to shine light on the various ways communities are incorporating 988 into existing approaches to crisis response.
News
March 9, 2023
Community leaders around the country have heralded the arrival of 988—the 3-digit…
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Key Staff
Director, Behavioral Health
Dr.
Ayesha
Delany-Brumsey
oversees
the
Behavioral
Health
Division
and
its
various
portfolios,
which
focus
on
how
parts
of
the
criminal
justice
system
intersect
with
the
mental
health,
substance
addiction,
and
homelessness
systems,
among
others.
Before
joining
the
organization,
Ayesha
was
...
most
recently
the
director
of
Behavioral
Health
Research
and
Programming
at
the
Mayor’s
Office
of
Criminal
Justice
in
New
York
City.
Prior
to
that,
she
was
the
director
of
the
Substance
Use
and
Mental
Health
program
at
the
Vera
Institute.
She
received
her
PhD
in
clinical
psychology
from
the
University
of
California,
Los
Angeles.
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Deputy Division Director, Behavioral Health
Ernest
Stevens
oversees
the
portfolio
of
work
focused
on
improving
outcomes
for
people
experiencing
behavioral
health
conditions
and
homelessness
who
encounter
law
enforcement.
Ernest
supports
communities
in
adopting,
implementing,
and
evaluating
new
practices.
Previously,
Ernest
spent
over
28
years
in
...
law
enforcement
helping
develop
new
programs
and
policies
for
the
San
Antonio
Police
Department.
He
also
worked
as
a
program
manager
for
the
Southwest
Texas
Regional
Advisory
Council
that
oversees
emergency
operations
for
22
counties
in
Texas.
Ernest
was
featured
in
the
Emmy
Award-winning
documentary
Ernie
and
Joe:
Crisis
Cops.
Ernest
also
wrote
Mental
Health
and
De-Escalation:
A
Guide
for
Law
Enforcement
Professionals.
He
earned
his
BS
in
criminal
justice
from
Wayland
Baptist
University.
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Interim Director, Behavioral Health
Hallie
Fader-Towe
works
with
local
and
state
policymakers
to
craft
policies,
processes,
and
programs
that
bring
research-informed
approaches
to
their
jurisdictions.
In
her
positions
with
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
she
has
worked
with
jurisdictions
around
the
country
on
collaborative,
data-driven
...
planning
and
implementation
efforts
to
address
criminal
justice
functions
from
initial
detention
through
reentry,
including
a
focus
on
people
with
mental
illnesses.
She
has
also
managed
the
development
of
training
materials
on
mental
health
courts
and
on
judicial
responses
to
the
prevalence
of
individuals
with
mental
illnesses
involved
with
the
criminal
justice
system.
She
has
written
on
court
case
processing,
competency
to
stand
trial,
dispute
systems
design
for
state
trial
courts,
pretrial
responses
to
people
with
mental
illnesses,
information
sharing
between
criminal
justice
and
mental
health
systems,
and
mental
health
court
design
and
implementation.
Before
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
she
was
a
management
consultant
with
McKinsey
&
Company
in
New
York.
Hallie
received
a
BA
from
Brown
University
and
a
JD
from
Harvard
Law
School.
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Senior Policy Analyst, Behavioral Health
Katie
Holihen
works
to
advance
locally
driven
state
policymaking
at
the
intersection
of
criminal
justice,
behavioral
health,
and
housing.
Prior
to
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
Katie
was
a
grant
analyst
at
the
Cook
County
Public
Defender’s
Office
in
Chicago,
...
where
she
worked
with
cross-sector
partners
to
launch
holistic
defense
and
data
analytics
programs.
She
also
led
curriculum
development
for
national
law
enforcement
training
initiatives
in
procedural
justice
and
cultural
humility
at
the
Center
for
Public
Safety
and
Justice
at
the
University
of
Illinois
at
Chicago.
Katie
has
a
BA
in
history
and
political
science
from
Marquette
University
and
an
MSW
from
Jane
Addams
College
of
Social
Work
at
the
University
of
Illinois
at
Chicago.
Read More
This project is supported by Grant No. 2019-MO-BX-K002 awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). BJA is a component of the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the SMART Office. This work is also conducted in partnership with The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice, SAMHSA, or the Council of State Governments.