UNION COUNTY, NJ – The Union County Prosecutor’s Office has expanded New Jersey’s ARRIVE Together program to additional police departments in the county. The program aims to provide compassionate response during 911 calls involving a mental health crisis.
The program involves teaming up a police officer, specifically trained in crisis intervention, with a civilian certified mental health screener to respond to 911 calls relating to a mental health crisis. During the encounter, the mental health screener takes the lead, while the officer and crisis worker arrive at the call in plain clothes and an unmarked police vehicle to create a less-stressful approach that both supports the individual facing a mental health crisis and protects the responding officers.
Since its inception, there have been no injuries or escalations associated with any Union County ARRIVE Together calls, according to Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel.
The program was first piloted by the Elizabeth and Linden Police Departments in June 2022, and the Roselle Park Police Department launched the program in December 2022. The program has now been expanded to Clark, Cranford, Plainfield, Scotch Plains, and Westfield, along with the Union County Police Department and the Union County Sheriff’s Office.