The El Paso Police Department's crisis intervention team is fielding an increasing number of mental health-related 911 calls, according to reports from local stations KFOX and KDBC. The trend is placing new demands on a unit designed to connect people in psychiatric distress with care rather than criminal consequences.
Crisis intervention teams, often called CIT units, are trained to respond to situations involving mental illness, suicide risk, and behavioral health emergencies. Officers on these teams receive specialized training that goes beyond standard law enforcement instruction, with the goal of de-escalating situations and diverting people toward treatment when appropriate.
El Paso's unit has been operating for several years, but the recent increase in call volume marks a shift in how frequently residents are turning to 911 for mental health help. The reasons behind that increase are not entirely clear from the available reporting, but nationally, communities have seen rising demand for mental health crisis services following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The growth in calls raises practical questions about capacity. Crisis intervention teams work within police departments, meaning their resources are tied to staffing and budget decisions that affect the broader department. A sustained increase in mental health calls can strain a team's availability for other assignments.
El Paso sits along the U.S.-Mexico border and has a large population that includes military families, veterans, migrants, and long-term residents facing economic pressures. Mental health professionals and researchers have documented elevated rates of trauma exposure and stress in border communities, which may contribute to demand for crisis services.
The reports from KFOX and KDBC did not specify the exact number of calls the team has received or the percentage increase, but the coverage indicates that department officials view the growth as significant enough to warrant public attention.
Crisis intervention as a model has gained support in cities across the country as an alternative to sending standard patrol officers to mental health calls. Critics of traditional police response to mental health emergencies have pointed to cases where those encounters turned violent. Trained CIT officers are positioned to reduce that risk.
Whether El Paso's team will expand in response to higher demand, or whether the city will pursue parallel civilian response programs, was not addressed in the available reporting. The increase in calls, however, reflects a pattern visible in cities from coast to coast as mental health needs continue to outpace available services.
