PHILADELPHIA (AP) — On a chilly February morning, Vanity Cordero, a Philadelphia police officer, responded to a radio call about a man threatening to jump from a bridge. The situation sounded familiar to her.

Upon arriving, Cordero realized she had encountered this man months earlier at the same location. Back then, she had managed to calm him down by engaging in a conversation about his family and offering him a hot meal.

Cordero is part of a program that teams trained officers with mental health and social work clinicians to respond to 911 calls and other crises. This initiative focuses on de-escalation techniques and connecting individuals with services, including follow-up support, as an alternative to arrest and the criminal justice system.

The unit began as a pilot program in late 2022, nearly two years after the tragic police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr, who was experiencing a mental health episode when police responded to his mother’s plea for assistance.

Research over the past two decades indicates that individuals with serious mental illnesses are over 10 times more likely to encounter force during police interactions.

Following Wallace’s death, both the police and the city invested in programs aimed at improving responses to mental health crises — part of a broader movement seen in numerous initiatives across police departments nationwide.

Officers with a personal connection

What sets Philadelphia’s unit apart is the extensive follow-up resources and the fact that many officers, like Cordero, have personal experiences that motivated them to join — such as family members with mental illnesses or addictions or previous work with at-risk communities.

Cordero shared that she grew up with her uncle, whom her mother cared for due to an intellectual disability now recognized as autism. She advocates for better police practices when interacting with autistic individuals.

“When I’m on duty, I think of each person as someone’s family member, like my uncle,” she said. “It gives you more patience and empathy towards those in need.”

On that February morning, Cordero quickly made her way to the bridge as part of the Crisis Intervention Response Team to support the responding patrol officers.

CIRT teams, driving SUVs without police lights or department decals and wearing informal uniforms, are often requested by other officers to assist and select calls to respond to citywide.

She stayed back until her presence was required, but the man recognized her and jokingly commented on her lighter skin tone compared to their last meeting.

They shared a laugh about her pale appearance during the winter months, and she reminded him of the cold, especially on the bridge.

Later that day, the man was placed on a mandatory mental health hold, and clinician Krystian Gardner would follow up with his family in the coming days to offer support.

Mental health is a growing part of police work

Many officers on the team noted that during regular patrols, numerous calls involved mental health issues. However, officers typically have only a few minutes to handle calls before moving to the next incident.

The CIRT team, however, spends over an hour on average with each individual, according to Lt. Victoria Casale, who oversees the unit.

“In policing, the resources and time to spend hours on calls are limited,” Casale said. “But we want our officers to invest time with people. We’re not leaving you. We’re solving this problem together.”

The team’s clinicians, employed by the nonprofit Merakey, a behavioral health provider, bring additional expertise and resources.

Audrey Lundy, program director for Merakey, recounted a call with the unit that shifted her perspective. Instead of a typical welfare check on a mother absent from work, Lundy and the CIRT officer brought groceries for the family using a flexible needs spending card. The woman had fallen ill, couldn’t work, and faced a financial crisis.

The groceries initiated a broader discussion about resources available to help her cover school costs, long-term expenses, and eventually return to her job.

A veteran problem solver

The officers appreciate the opportunity to be problem solvers. For Officer Kenneth Harper, a Marine combat veteran, his CIRT role allows him to assist fellow veterans struggling to adjust to civilian life or dealing with mental health issues.

“There was a gentleman who served over 30 years in the Army — highly decorated and respected,” Harper said. “But he was very resistant, never seeking help or services.”

Harper and another officer with military experience built rapport with the man, eventually guiding him to the veterans hospital for treatment and housing assistance.

“We stayed in contact for months afterward, checking in,” he said.

Casale noted that Harper has gone above and beyond, even enlisting other veterans in the department to share training on trauma responses and resources for veterans.

This is just one way the small unit has expanded its reach. The eight-officer CIRT team covers the entire city on weekdays, but crises don’t pause on nights and weekends. Casale hopes the team can grow as districts across the city recognize and trust their work.

They want people to call CIRT directly for help instead of waiting for an emergency to call 911.

“We want them to reach out to us,” Cordero said about the man on the bridge. “I told him, you know, you can call us. We can just go eat. We don’t have to keep meeting on this bridge.”