Crisis Systems
Across the nation, communities are recognizing that building comprehensive crisis prevention and response systems is critical to supporting people with behavioral health needs. As communities work to build their crisis systems, they are also increasingly looking to expand beyond typical police responses by connecting people to care at the point of calls to 911, coordinating with 988, and deploying options such as community responders, co-response teams, and mobile crisis teams.
Having such systems in place can help reduce overreliance on law enforcement and improve health. With JMHCP support, jurisdictions can ensure that their interventions are part of a larger comprehensive, coordinated crisis system, informed by data and led by a diverse group of community stakeholders. Jurisdictions can also provide post-crisis support, case management, follow-up, and other services to interrupt cycles of repeated crises.
988: A Shared Opportunity for Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health Partners
Selected Resources
A Matter of Public Health and Safety: How States Can Support Local Crisis Systems
Crisis Systems
Taking the Call: A national conference exploring innovative community responder models
Crisis Systems
Key Staff
Ayesha Delany-Brumsey
Director, Behavioral Health
Dr. Ayesha Delany-Brumsey oversees the Behavioral Health Division and its various portfolios, which focus on how parts of the criminal justice system intersect with the mental health, substance addiction, and homelessness systems, among others. Before joining the organization, Ayesha was most recently the director of Behavioral Health Research and Programming at the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice in New York City. Prior to that, she was the director of the Substance Use and Mental Health program at the Vera Institute. She received her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Katie Holihen
Senior Policy Analyst, Behavioral Health
Katie Holihen works to advance locally driven state policymaking at the intersection of criminal justice, behavioral health, and housing. Prior to joining the CSG Justice Center, Katie was a grant analyst at the Cook County Public Defender’s Office in Chicago, where she worked with cross-sector partners to launch holistic defense and data analytics programs. She also led curriculum development for national law enforcement training initiatives in procedural justice and cultural humility at the Center for Public Safety and Justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Katie has a BA in history and political science from Marquette University and an MSW from Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Anne Larsen
Program Manager, Behavioral Health
Anne Larsen helps coordinate crisis response alternatives and initiatives and provides technical assistance and education on community responder programs. Prior to joining the CSG Justice Center, she worked for the Olympia Police Department and created, implemented, and managed the Crisis Response Unit (CRU) and Familiar Faces program. CRU is designed after the CAHOOTS model, which deploys unarmed, civilian-first responders to community members in crisis. Before working for the police department, she worked for the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney’s office championing alternatives to the criminal justice system and supporting treatment courts. Anne has a BA in public administration and an MPA from The Evergreen State College.