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Top Cop Escalante Says Police Will Evaluate Crisis Training After Deaths

By Kelly Bauer | December 28, 2015 9:45am | Updated on December 28, 2015 9:55am
 Interim Police Supt. John Escalante said the Chicago Police Department will re-evaluate its Crisis Intervention Training and de-escalation policies after the deaths of two people this weekend.
Interim Police Supt. John Escalante said the Chicago Police Department will re-evaluate its Crisis Intervention Training and de-escalation policies after the deaths of two people this weekend.
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Getty Images/Scott Olson

CHICAGO — Police officials say the department will re-evaluate how it responds to people having mental and emotional crises and how officers attempt to calm such situations.

The review comes after the Saturday deaths of Quintonio LeGrier and Bettie Jones. LeGrier had struggled with mental illness, family said, and his father called police early that morning because his son was carrying a bat. Police shot and killed LeGrier and also killed Jones, the latter incident described by authorities as a tragic accident.

On Sunday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel called upon the Chicago Police Department and the Independent Police Review Authority to examine how police respond to mental health-related incidents, called Crisis Intervention Training. He wants the groups to "determine the deficiencies in the current training or policies" and find ways to fix them.

Interim Police Supt. John Escalante agreed with the mayor on Monday morning, saying he would meet with the Independent Police Review Authority this week to re-evaluate the department's policies and training.

"I am looking forward to bringing my team to the table with IPRA early this week for a critical evaluation of our policies and procedures so we can make any changes needed to ensure we follow the highest professional standards and bring residents the comfort and safety they deserve," Escalante said.

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