BILL REQ. #:  S-0246.1 

Read first time 01/27/2003.   Referred to Committee on Judiciary.

     AN ACT Relating to providing law enforcement officers with training in interaction with developmentally disabled and mentally ill persons; and adding a new section to chapter 43.101 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 43.101 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The commission must offer a training session on law enforcement interaction with developmentally disabled and mentally ill persons. The training must be developed by the commission in consultation with appropriate community, local, and state organizations and agencies that have expertise in the area of mental illness and developmental disability, and with appropriate consumer and family advocate groups. In developing the course, the commission must also examine existing courses certified by the commission that relate to mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons.
     (2) The training must consist of classroom instruction and use interactive training methods to ensure that the training is as realistic as possible. The training must include, at a minimum, core instruction in all of the following:
     (a) The cause and nature of mental illnesses and developmental disabilities;
     (b) How to identify indicators of mental illness and developmental disability and how to respond appropriately in a variety of common situations;
     (c) Conflict resolution and deescalation techniques for potentially dangerous situations involving mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons;
     (d) Appropriate language usage when interacting with mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons;
     (e) Alternatives to lethal force when interacting with potentially dangerous mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons; and
     (f) Community and state resources available to serve mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons and how these resources can be best used by law enforcement to benefit the mentally ill and developmentally disabled community.