March 25, 2002 - The mayor of Minneapolis joined state lawmakers and mental health advocates at the Capitol today to support a bill to make it easier for police officers to commit someone having a mental health crisis. They say the bill will help prevent tragedies. Two weeks ago, an apparently delusional Minneapolis man was shot and killed after confronting police with a machete. But some in the mental health field say with funds dwindling, there's no place to bring people in crisis. MPR’s Art Hughes presents this report on gathering.
March 25, 2002 - MPR’s Art Hughes reports on push for bill focused on addressing mental health crisis incidents. The mayor of Minneapolis joined state lawmakers and mental health advocates at the Capitol to support a bill to make it easier for police officers to commit someone having a mental health crisis. They say the bill will help prevent tragedies. Two weeks ago, an apparently delusional Minneapolis man was shot and killed after confronting police with a machete. Some in the mental health field say with funds dwindling, there's no place to bring people in crisis. Report includes comments from Mindy Greiling, state representative and author of bill; R.T. Rybak, mayor of Minneapolis; Greg Hestness, Minneapolis deputy police chief; John Trepp, member of Friends of Barbara Schneider; and Sue Aberholden, executive director of National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).