His son was suffering from a mental health crisis and was threatening people in a Gainesville neighborhood with knives.
GAINESVILLE, Ga. — A mother who called 911 hoping her son would help, she said she was having a mental health crisis and threatened people in a Gainesville neighborhood with knives. She wanted someone to respond and transport him to a facility for help. However, the 911 dispatcher told her that she couldn’t do that.
His son ended up being shot by a neighbor. the shooting shook the neighborhood on Shades Valley Lane, but moments before, 911 calls reveal the mother tried to bring mental health resources to the scene to help her son.
“My son, he’s paranoid schizophrenic, and he walks around the parking lot with two knives and stuff and talks about killing people,” she said.
Neighbors reported that the suspect was brandishing knives, walking with his eight-year-old son, damaging cars and property, and asking people to kill him. Police said a resident shot the man after he chased him to the medics. The suspect survived and went to the hospital, where he was last in stable condition.
the form 1013 what the mother requested is a legal document that authorizes transportation to an emergency reception facility so that someone experiencing a mental health episode can get help. Anyone who poses an imminent danger to themselves or others is eligible, but 1013 forms must be completed by licensed licensed physicians.
Licensed professional counselor Tami Brown has over 20 years as a clinician, advocate, and lived experience helping with behavioral health situations. She said a quarter of Americans have behavioral health diagnoses, which she said can be as common as physical health problems.
“We want to make sure people get the right treatment in the least restrictive way possible,” Brown said. “In a perfect world, we would like our licensed doctors to be always on site, anyone to help defuse a situation. What we don’t want is a lot of 1013s being signed because people don’t understand people from other cultures, because that can get a little ugly.”
Brown said there also aren’t enough psychiatric hospitals or crisis stabilization units to send 1,013 patients, so sometimes, patients may be sent to hospital emergency departments.
Hall County 911 said he was not authorized to issue a 1013. gainesville police He said that in this specific case on Monday, there was no time before the shooting to make sure the scene was safe and send a certified doctor.
“I think it varies by situation, agency and policy,” a Hall County 911 spokesperson said. “We have officers letting us know they’re going to hand over 1013 documents. We have facilities calling and saying they’ve signed 1013 documents in hand, and in other situations, first responders have transported people to a medical facility for a 1013 evaluation based on what is occurring or has occurred on the scene. We simply respond units to assess the situation and handle it according to their policy/procedure.”
“Generally, 1013 forms must be completed after a medical examination by a licensed professional,” a Gainesville police spokesperson said. “We are one of the few agencies that has a co-response program with licensed physicians on the front lines who can commit them to a 1013. In this case, there was never any time before the shooting incident. Unfortunately, that is part of the program. to ensure the scene is safe before medics arrive.”
Brown said that people can call 988 for behavioral health emergencies, while 911 must be called for more criminal scenarios.
“Any time there’s a behavioral health situation, that doesn’t mean there’s a crisis,” Brown said. “We don’t know about behavioral health if we’re afraid to talk about it, and again, talking about mental health is still taboo. It’s getting better, but it’s still taboo.”
Brown accredits 1013 forms and co-response programs, where the police go out on calls with licensed professionals, to de-escalate tense situations. He said that research, education, training and talking more about behavioral health can lead to less long-term violent outcomes when responding to mental health episodes.
“We can’t keep calling the police every time we see someone who may not look like us or may look a little more agitated than beyond our comfort zone, right? We have to educate ourselves,” Brown said.
Gainesville police said a doctor responded to the hospital to help the suspect. Investigators said that once released, the suspect will be charged with criminal attempt to commit murder, two counts of obstructing an EMT, aggravated assault and weapons charges. Police said that for now, the man wielding the knives was the only one who would be charged in this case as the investigation continues.
