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# Sheriff: State Mental Health Cuts Undermine Public Safety
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/state_mental_health_0323120622/
- Published: 2012-03-23T08:21:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-22T18:40:37.000Z
- Description: Three-quarters of states cut mental health budgets in each of the past four fiscal years, $4.35 billion in all, while demand rose 10 percent. Gallatin County sheriff Brian Gootkin says psychiatric emergencies are rising and his deputies now handcuff and drive patients up to two hours.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Healthcare, Health News, #vivvo-import

#### HEALTH CARE IN THE STATES

##   

By Jenny Gold

MARCH 22ND, 2012, 5:54 PM

[](http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/NPR-KHN-States-Gateway.aspx?ref=foodconsumer.org)

As states have struggled to balance their budgets during the economic downturn, mental health programs have frequently weathered [significant cuts](http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2011/11/states-cut-mental-health-budgets-as-demand-increases/?ref=foodconsumer.org). Three-quarters of states have cut their mental health budgets during each of the past four fiscal years, for a combined reduction of $4.35 billion, according to the [National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors Research Institute](http://www.nri-inc.org/whatsnew%5Fview.cfm?ID=99&ref=foodconsumer.org), which represents state mental health agencies.

At the same time, demand for mental health services has increased by 10 percent, the group says.

But state mental health agencies aren’t the only ones feeling the pain— [local law enforcement agencies](http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/137864878.html?source=error) say they’re bearing the brunt of the cuts.

Brian Gootkin is the Sheriff of Gallatin County, Montana — an area twice the size of Rhode Island, encompassing Bozeman and part of Yellowstone National Park — and he oversees 48 deputies. Gootkin says his force is “experiencing a significant increase” in psychiatric emergencies, which he says is a “direct result of mental health funding reductions.” [Montana has cut](http://www.nami.org/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm?ContentFileID=147763&ref=foodconsumer.org) its state mental health budget by 5.8 percent since 2009, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. [](http://www.nami.org/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm?ContentFileID=147763&ref=foodconsumer.org)

“I would go so far as to say that my officers have become an involuntary component of the State of Montana’s emergency psychiatric response teams,” Gootkin said at a briefing on Capitol Hill Thursday.

When the police are called for a psychiatric emergency, he says his deputies are required to handcuff the patient and transport him or her in the back of the patrol call to the nearest facility, which may be up to two hours away. The lengthy process has a major impact on the day-to-day operations of law enforcement, he explains, but it’s nothing in comparison to his colleagues in Custer County, Montana, where the nearest state hospital is nearly six hours away and there are only three deputies.

The increase in psych calls has a direct impact on public safety, Gootkin argues. “Every deputy that is diverted to the Montana State Hospital, or even to our local hospital is not on patrol maintaining public order and deterring crime,” he says. And while his officers have some mental health training, “they are not mental health professionals, and I don’t want them to be. I want them to be deputy sheriffs.”

THIS ENTRY WAS POSTED ON THURSDAY, MARCH 22ND, 2012 AT 5:54 PM.

### 3 Responses to “Sheriff: State Mental Health Cuts Undermine Public Safety”

1. [MISS MOYNIHAN M.S.](http://noneother...../?ref=foodconsumer.org) SAYS:  
[MARCH 22, 2012 AT 7:35 PM](http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2012/03/sheriff-state-mental-health-cuts-undermine-public-safety/comment-page-1/?ref=foodconsumer.org#comment-33166)  
Also, some clients who are put on a psych hold, turn and accuse the police or sheriff of assaulting them. Do you know, or are you aware that the responding officers must obtain their own counsel, and pay for it. Not every police or sheriff dept stands behind their responding officers. If they did nothing wrong, and that is the protocal to cuff, and transport, then their dept should support All officers who are accused of this attrocity. These individuals obviously may already be in an altered state of mind, and may be hyper sensitive to cuffs being placed on them, or to being put into a police car, usually poor guyan ambulance is best to use though. They have access to meds via phone contact directly with responding ER physician. The responding police officer is limited in how they may respond. But really, who wants to feel threatoned in losing their hard earned real estate, or other valuables that they worked so hard to earn, due to being accused of “Assaulting” a 51/50 patient. They need to be covered for responding, and backed up by the law. Unless it’s really obvious that the officer battered and there is a witness, why would they not provide FREE counsel to their officers. You can’t have it both ways, and you need to support these officers whose life is on the line daily for your department, and citicens. I know an individual who had nothing to do but resign as a police officer , for his department would not support his initiating a 51/50, and then the person being 51/50 was screaming “Assault,Assault!!” The poor officer took a step down, and felt he had no other choice but to resign from his 20 year tour of duty as a police officer because he couldn’t afford to put his life on the line, and not be supported, including legal counsel in the Event that it was Needed. We still can’t believe this happened to this officer. He was a hard working, professional police officer. His entire life was being a police Officer. He even volunteered as a crossing guard at the young age of 12 at his catholic elementary school. He planned his entire life to become a Peace Officer. Then his career ended because of that ” Hysterical Bitch!!” And, the temp police chief who by the way retired or transferred after saying that he would not support this police officer against that lady’s false accusations of assault. Well the police chief moved on after that, paid off well of course. Meanwhile the police officer wasn’t paid off. He had no choice but to quit,”Retire” was how he put it for his public work record. But we know what really happened, and we know how unfair some of these departments are being to perhaps the employees from lower income families, or is it because they’re products of immigrant parents. There’s something going on, and it’z just getting worse!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2. [MISS MOYNIHAN M.S.](http://noneother...../?ref=foodconsumer.org) SAYS:  
[MARCH 22, 2012 AT 7:37 PM](http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2012/03/sheriff-state-mental-health-cuts-undermine-public-safety/comment-page-1/?ref=foodconsumer.org#comment-33167)  
Also, some clients who are put on a psych hold, turn and accuse the police or sheriff of assaulting them. Do you know, or are you aware that the responding officers must obtain their own counsel, and pay for it. Not every police or sheriff dept stands behind their responding officers. If they did nothing wrong, and that is the protocal to cuff, and transport, then their dept should support All officers who are accused of this attrocity. These individuals obviously may already be in an altered state of mind, and may be hyper sensitive to cuffs being placed on them, or to being put into a police car, usually ambulance transport is best to use though. They have access to meds via phone contact directly with responding ER physician. The responding police officer is limited in how they may respond. But really, who wants to feel threatened in losing their hard earned real estate, or other valuables that they worked so hard to earn, due to being accused of “Assaulting” a 51/50 patient. They need to be covered for responding, and backed up by the law. Unless it’s really obvious that the officer battered and there is a witness, why would they not provide FREE counsel to their officers. You can’t have it both ways, and you need to support these officers whose life is on the line daily for your department, and citicens. I know an individual who had nothing to do but resign as a police officer , for his department would not support his initiating a 51/50, and then the person being 51/50 was screaming “Assault,Assault!!” The poor officer took a step down, and felt he had no other choice but to resign from his 20 year tour of duty as a police officer because he couldn’t afford to put his life on the line, and not be supported, including legal counsel in the Event that it was Needed. We still can’t believe this happened to this officer. He was a hard working, professional police officer. His entire life was being a police Officer. He even volunteered as a crossing guard at the young age of 12 at his catholic elementary school. He planned his entire life to become a Peace Officer. Then his career ended because of that ” Hysterical Bitch!!” And, the temp police chief who by the way retired or transferred after saying that he would not support this police officer against that lady’s false accusations of assault. Well the police chief moved on after that, paid off well of course. Meanwhile the police officer wasn’t paid off. He had no choice but to quit,”Retire” was how he put it for his public work record. But we know what really happened, and we know how unfair some of these departments are being to perhaps the employees from lower income families, or is it because they’re products of immigrant parents. There’s something going on, and it’z just getting worse!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan health policy research and communication organization not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.