A crisis intervention team officer is a law enforcement officer trained to respond to situations involving a behavioral health crisis, such as a mental health emergency or a substance use crisis. Often called a CIT officer, this officer may use communication and de-escalation skills to reduce immediate danger, assess what kind of help is needed, and connect a person with appropriate services. CIT programs vary by community, so an officer’s training, available response options, and follow-up resources depend on local policies and partnerships.
What Is a Crisis Intervention Team Officer?
A crisis intervention team officer is a police officer who has received specialized training to respond to calls involving behavioral health concerns. CIT stands for Crisis Intervention Team, a community-based approach that brings law enforcement together with mental health providers, people with lived experience, family members, and other community partners.
The term is sometimes used for an individual officer who completed CIT training and sometimes for a broader local program. In either case, the goal is to improve how crisis calls are handled—not to make police officers mental health clinicians. Officers remain responsible for public safety and law enforcement duties, while clinicians and health providers deliver clinical assessment and treatment.
The model is commonly associated with the Memphis Police Department and partners who developed a program in 1988 after a police shooting involving a person with a mental illness. CIT programs have since been adapted by communities across the United States. Local versions can differ substantially in structure and resources.
What Does a CIT Officer Do?
A CIT officer’s role depends on the call, the person’s needs, safety conditions, and local procedures. The officer may be dispatched specifically because a call involves a behavioral health crisis, or a CIT-trained officer may respond as part of a regular patrol assignment.
- Assess immediate safety: The officer looks for urgent risks, including injuries, access to weapons, threats, medical distress, or danger to other people.
- Communicate and de-escalate: The officer may use calm language, active listening, time, distance, and a less confrontational approach when circumstances allow.
- Gather information: The officer may ask about the person’s immediate needs, health concerns, medication, support network, or what led to the call.
- Connect the person with help: Depending on local options, the officer may contact a crisis team, arrange transport to a crisis center or emergency department, or provide information about services.
- Take law enforcement action when necessary: If there is an immediate threat, a serious crime, or another legal basis for intervention, the officer may take action consistent with law and department policy.
A CIT officer does not automatically have authority to make a clinical diagnosis, prescribe medication, or decide whether a person needs inpatient treatment. Those decisions generally belong to qualified health professionals, subject to applicable state law and the circumstances of the case.
How CIT Training Works
Many programs provide a specialized course commonly described as 40 hours, but there is no single national CIT credential with identical requirements in every jurisdiction. Training length, curriculum, selection criteria, and refresher requirements can vary. Some departments also provide crisis-response instruction to officers who have not completed a full CIT course.
Training commonly covers mental health conditions, substance use, trauma, communication, de-escalation, suicide risk, local treatment resources, and relevant laws and department procedures. Programs may include role-play or scenario-based exercises. Some involve people with lived experience and family members who share perspectives on how crisis encounters can affect individuals and households.
CIT training is intended to help officers recognize possible behavioral health needs and make safer, more informed decisions. It does not guarantee that every crisis will be resolved without force, arrest, or emergency transport. Outcomes depend on the specific situation, available services, staffing, and the person’s needs.
How a CIT Response May Unfold
There is no single script for a CIT call, but a response often follows several practical steps. Dispatchers may collect information about the emergency and send a CIT-trained officer, a clinician, or both, depending on local practice. If there is an immediate medical emergency or a clear threat, responders may need to act quickly.
- Initial contact: The officer identifies themselves, observes the surroundings, and considers whether it is safe to approach. When feasible, the officer may reduce noise, limit the number of people speaking, and avoid sudden movements.
- Conversation and assessment: The officer may give the person time to respond, listen without arguing, and ask direct questions about immediate safety or medical needs. A clinician, if available, may conduct a more detailed behavioral health assessment.
- Choosing a response: Options may include voluntary care, referral to a community service, contact with a mobile crisis team, transport to a crisis facility or emergency department, or law enforcement action where legally appropriate.
- Handoff and documentation: When the person is connected to another service, responders may communicate relevant information to support continuity of care. Privacy rules and local protocols affect what can be shared.
The sequence may change if the person is injured, unconscious, experiencing a medical emergency, or creating an immediate danger. In an emergency in the United States, calling 911 may be necessary. For mental health or substance use distress that is not an immediate emergency, calling or texting 988 can connect people with the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
CIT Officers, Mobile Crisis Teams, and Co-Responder Programs
Related crisis-response terms are sometimes used interchangeably, but they describe different arrangements. A CIT program typically trains law enforcement officers and builds partnerships with local behavioral health services. A mobile crisis team generally consists of behavioral health professionals who respond in the community. A co-responder model sends a law enforcement officer and a clinician together, or coordinates their response.
Communities can combine these approaches. For example, a CIT-trained patrol officer may respond first and request a clinician, while another jurisdiction may dispatch a clinician-led mobile team when the call meets local criteria. The exact model affects who arrives, what services are available, and whether transport or follow-up care can be arranged.
| Response Type | Typical Responders | Common Role |
|---|---|---|
| CIT response | CIT-trained law enforcement officer, sometimes with other responders | Use crisis-focused communication and connect the person with local services while addressing safety and legal responsibilities. |
| Mobile crisis team | Behavioral health professionals; team composition varies | Provide community-based crisis assessment and support under local program rules. |
| Co-responder response | Law enforcement officer and behavioral health clinician, together or in coordination | Combine public safety response with clinical expertise when both are needed. |
What CIT Programs Aim to Improve
CIT programs are designed to make crisis responses safer and better connected to behavioral health care. They may help officers recognize when a person could benefit from treatment, give responders more options than arrest alone, and improve coordination among police, crisis services, hospitals, and community organizations.
Research does not support assuming that every CIT program produces the same results. A program’s impact can depend on the quality of training, whether officers can reach a clinician, the availability of crisis facilities, and what happens after an encounter. Studies often examine outcomes such as officer knowledge and attitudes, use of force, arrests, transport, or connections to services; findings vary across programs and measures.
Training alone cannot make up for a shortage of crisis beds, long waits for evaluation, limited community services, or poor follow-up. A strong local response typically requires more than trained officers: it also needs workable referral pathways, clear protocols, adequate staffing, and services that can accept people when they are in crisis.
Important Limits and Considerations
A CIT officer is still a law enforcement officer. CIT training changes the tools and knowledge available to an officer; it does not turn the officer into a therapist or remove the officer’s legal duties. A person may still be arrested or taken for emergency evaluation when the facts and applicable law support that response.
De-escalation is not a guarantee. Communication strategies can help in some situations, but they cannot eliminate every risk or prevent every use of force. Immediate danger, medical complications, environmental hazards, and the person’s condition may limit available choices.
Program availability is local. Some communities have dedicated crisis teams, clinicians on call, or specialized receiving centers. Others may have fewer options, and a CIT-trained officer may be the main available responder. Residents can ask their local police department or behavioral health agency how its program operates.
Privacy rules still apply. Responders may need to share information to address an emergency or coordinate care, but health privacy laws and other rules can affect what information is disclosed. The details depend on who holds the information, the purpose of sharing it, and applicable law.
How to Find a CIT Program or Crisis Help
To find out whether a community has CIT-trained officers, residents can check the local police or sheriff’s department website, contact the department’s community engagement unit, or ask a county behavioral health agency. Useful questions include whether CIT officers are available around the clock, whether clinicians can respond, what crisis receiving facilities accept referrals, and whether follow-up services are offered.
For immediate danger, a serious injury, or a medical emergency, call 911. When a person is in emotional distress or considering suicide but does not appear to be in immediate physical danger, call or text 988 in the United States to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. The 988 service is not a substitute for emergency medical care when there is an imminent threat or urgent medical need.
For local behavioral health referrals, SAMHSA’s National Helpline offers free, confidential treatment referral and information in English and Spanish. It can be reached at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). Availability and eligibility for local services can differ, so a referral does not guarantee that a specific program has an opening.
Reliable Sources for More Information
Program details should be checked with local agencies because CIT structures and standards differ. National organizations provide useful background on crisis services and behavioral health resources:
- SAMHSA: 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline explains how to contact crisis support in the United States.
- SAMHSA: National Helpline provides treatment referral and information for mental health and substance use concerns.
- U.S. Department of Justice provides federal guidance and resources related to law enforcement and community safety.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness offers information about crisis intervention and community approaches.