Salt Lake DA describes challenge of balancing mental health, public safety

SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill walked local media through a presentation Friday explaining why determined officers’ use of deadly force against a suicidal gunman last July in Salt Lake City was justified.

It has been seven months since officers exchanged gunfire with Navada Escholt, 42, who was threatening suicide.

“I think everyone was trying to do the right thing on this stage,” Gill said.

Scholt can be seen on body camera video firing a shot towards the officers, forcing them to take cover and fire back.

About a minute into the exchange, Escholt retreated inside and died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Officers knew he was dealing with a person in crisis, and though it ended in tragedy, Gill says officers exercised extreme restraint and care.

“They don’t want to break down the door. They don’t want to run into the apartment,” she said.

READ: West Valley City settles lawsuit over shooting inside police station

The officers gathered near a tree about 80 feet from the apartment building as a strategy to create space between them and the person in distress, and to discuss what to do next.

Officers were originally called to the department because Escholt’s ex-wife-to-be called and said Escholt was suicidal, had a gun and was not taking his medication.

Gill says these elements explain why the nexus between public safety, officer safety, and mental illness is so complex.

“You can’t control the dynamics in the field, and when there’s a weapon involved, it compresses that distance very quickly,” he said.

All three officers had crisis intervention training, so their goal was to de-escalate as much as possible.

“That proximity creates that anxiety sometimes when it comes to someone who has behavioral health issues, so they’re very careful about putting distance between them,” Gill said.

He says that even with training, these situations are dynamic.

“You can prepare but you can’t predict what’s going to happen,” Gill said.

But he says we must continue to invest in more services and resources that support mental health care for our community.

“The lesson for us is that we as a community have to do better,” Gill said.

Gill also points out that 9-1-1 is often the default, but sometimes in a mental health crisis, people should first try dialing 9-8-8, the short number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. . However, in this case, because it was mentioned that it was a firearm, a 9-1-1 call made sense out of concern for public safety, in addition to trying to get help for the person in question. crisis.

FOX 13 spoke with Escholt’s wife, who wanted us to mention the number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which is 800-273-8255.

She says that her husband had used the crisis line several times.

___________

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or visiting suicidepreventionlifeline.org