Valley Introduces Crisis Intervention Team

Several agencies in the Valley are teaming up to improve law enforcement efforts for those with mental illnesses.

The Valley Community Services Board is introducing a Crisis Intervention Team that will include help from the Staunton and Waynesboro police departments, the Augusta County Sheriff's Office, and the Middle River Regional Jail.

Organizers say the team will include trained officers from each agency that will enhance responses to situations involving people with mental illnesses.

The local team is one of five in Virginia, funded by a recent grant from the Department of Criminal Justice Services.

CIT Instructor from the Valley Community Services Board James Spurgeon says, "The CIT program is seeking to reduce that trauma by working with the officers by improving access to the mental health services and by also community wide trying to reduce some of the stigma."

The VCSB held a public introduction Tuesday at the Stonewall Jackson Hotel in Staunton. Organizers say it's been a program two years in the making.