An Aurora, Colorado police watchdog is calling for the creation of a task force after officers killed three people who were in mental health crises, according to a report by The Denver Post.
The oversight body's recommendation follows a pattern of fatal encounters between Aurora police and individuals who were experiencing mental health emergencies rather than committing violent crimes. The three deaths drew attention to how law enforcement agencies respond when a call involves someone in psychological distress.
Details of the individual incidents were not fully outlined in available reporting, but the watchdog's push for a task force suggests the oversight body believes existing policies or practices are not adequate for handling mental health calls. Task forces of this kind typically bring together law enforcement, mental health professionals, city officials, and community representatives to examine what changes are needed.
Aurora has faced scrutiny over its police department before. The city drew national attention in 2019 and the years that followed over separate use-of-force cases. The new recommendation adds to ongoing pressure on the department and city leadership to change how officers are trained and deployed when mental illness is involved.
Many cities across the United States have moved in recent years to create co-responder programs, where a mental health clinician accompanies an officer on certain calls, or alternative response programs, where clinicians go without police to lower-risk situations. Whether Aurora would pursue either model would likely be among the questions a task force would examine.
The watchdog's call for action does not carry the force of law, but oversight bodies in many cities have successfully pushed for policy changes through sustained public pressure and formal recommendations. City leaders in Aurora have not yet publicly responded to the recommendation, according to available reporting.
The families of the three people killed have not been named in available reporting, but cases involving fatal police responses to mental health calls have increasingly prompted legal action, policy reform, and community organizing in cities where they occur.
