AgdaPkt 2021.01.25 Amended Joint SA PFA

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CLK-Roger Hardy From: Holly Lim Sent: Monday, January 25, 2021 2:08 PM To: GRP -City Council Subject: Public Comment: 7.A. (Community Wellness and Crisis Response Team Mental Health Partnership between the City of Daly City, City of Redwood City, City of San Mateo, City of South San Francisco, and the County of San Mateo) CAUTION: This email originated from outside your organization. Exercise caution when opening attachments or clicking links, especially from unknown senders. Dear Redwood City Council, My name is Holly Lim, and I am a Daly City resident. Daly City is one of the partner cities in the proposed Community Wellness and Crisis Response Team pilot program under discussion in agenda item 7.A.. As this program will involve both our cities, I wanted to reach out to you with input I have also shared with the Daly City Council. A study by the Treatment Advocacy Center shows about 25% of all fatal encounters with law enforcement involve a person with severe mental illnesses. We depend too heavily on police for too much, and we expect officers who get little more than an introduction to the complexities of mental health disorders to know how to manage a complex situation with standard -issue tools, such as guns or tasers. I agree with the recommendation to hire a team of clinicians rather than just one person and to replace armed officers with unarmed emergency first responders like EMTs who accompany clinicians. By investing in a model that would pair emergency medical responders with trained peers with lived experience and removing this responsibility from the police (and shifting it to those with the skills and mind -set to connect with people in crisis), Redwood City will help create a safer city for Black and Brown communities. I am ready to offer further guidance and input into the recommendations provided tonight and to ensure that Redwood City establishes a new standard for community support and response. Thank you, Holly Lim Holly R. Lim, MA