First of a kind Mental Illness Training Continued for Jail Personnel 

Buffalo, NY – Erie County Sheriff Timothy B. Howard announces the state accredited Jail Management Division is hosting another training course for supervisors, Deputies, and Corrections Officers to help them communicate and utilize de-escalation techniques when interacting with inmates suffering from mental illnesses. 

The Crisis Intervention Training is the second round to take place since its implementation in March 2017, and $15,000.00 for this initiative was transferred from jail telephone services revenue. 

An additional thirty personnel will attend the three-day training module, and the broad curriculum includes hands-on training and scenario-based role-playing to prepare the officers for various incidents. 

The Sheriff’s Office worked with Crisis Services to develop and implement a correctional-based crisis intervention training program uniquely designed to work within a correctional setting and educate officers about the signs and symptoms of mental illness.  Coupled with the knowledge to detect the signs of mental illness is a training model that emphasizes de-escalation techniques and utilizing support services to prevent explosive situations. 

The Erie County Sheriff’s Office Jail Management Division was the first to implement this training in county jails outside of New York City.