Policy Text
POLICE
TATE
CHMOND
RICHMOND POLICE DEPARTMENT
GENERAL ORDER
Subject: PERSONS IN MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS
References:
CALEA: 1.1.3, 41.2.7a-e
POLICE
D
Chapter
6
Number
17
# Pages
14
Related Orders: 01-13, 06-
10, 06-18
Effective Date: 07/08/2025
Revised by: PD-132
Prv. Rev. Date: 03/13/2023
VA State Code: §§ 16.1-.40.1, 16.1-341(B), 16.1-340.3,
37.2-808, 37.2-809, 37.2-1104
If any provision of this General Order conflicts with any collective bargaining article,
the collective bargaining agreement shall govern.
Chief of Police:
I.
PURPOSE
.
II.
The purpose of this directive is to establish the policy and procedure for the handling of
persons in mental health crisis by members of the Richmond Police Department, service of
ECOS and TDOs and any associated follow-up investigations.
SUMMARY OF CHANGE
This revision renames the policy, restructures the layout of information in the policy,
expands definitions, discusses the use of the Co-Responder Team, clarifies custody and
transport responsibilities between precincts and overtime or part-time officers, and adds
language referencing escapes from custody. Modifications from a prior executive order
pertaining to criminal offenses by persons under an emergency custody order or a
temporary detention order have also been incorporated, and an index has been added.
These changes are in bold and italicized text. Revisions were made to correct grammar,
style, and formatting. These revisions are not in bold or italicized text.
III. POLICY
It is the policy of the Richmond Police Department to provide guidance to its sworn
personnel regarding the ways to handle a situation involving a person in mental health crisis
legally and procedurally.
IV. ACCOUNTABILITY STATEMENT
All employees are expected to fully comply with the guidelines and timelines set forth in this
general order. Responsibility rests with the division commander to ensure that any violations
of policy are investigated and appropriate training, counseling, and disciplinary action are
initiated.
Page 1 of 14 General Order 06-17 (07/08/2025)
PERSONS IN MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS
V.
This directive is for internal use only and does not enlarge an employee's civil liability in any
way. It should not be construed as the creation of a higher standard of safety or care in an
evidentiary sense, with respect to third party claims. Violation of this directive, if proven, can
only form the basis of a complaint by this Department, and then only in a non-judicial
administrative setting.
DEFINITIONS
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
ADULT EMERGENCY CUSTODY ORDER - An emergency custody order (ECO)
orders police officers to take into custody and transport the individual named in the
ECO to a convenient location where they can be evaluated face to face by a person
designated by the local Community Service Board who is skilled in the diagnosis and
treatment of mental illness to determine whether the person meets the criteria for
temporary detention pursuant to Virginia Code § 37.2-809.
PAPER ECO - Any magistrate shall issue, upon the sworn petition of any responsible
person, treating physician, or upon his own motion, an emergency custody order when
they have probable cause to believe that any person:
1.
Has a mental illness and that there exists a substantial likelihood that, because of
mental illness, the person will, in the near future;
a. Cause serious physical harm to themself or others as evidenced by recent
behavior causing, attempting, or threatening harm and other relevant
information, if any; or
b.
Suffer serious harm due to their lack of capacity to protect themself from
harm or to provide for their basic human needs.
2. Needs hospitalization or treatment; and,
3. Is unwilling to volunteer or incapable of volunteering for hospitalization or
treatment.
PAPERLESS ECO - A law enforcement officer who, based upon their observations or
the reliable reports of others, has probable cause to believe that a person meets the
criteria for emergency custody, as described above, may take that person into custody
and transport that person to an appropriate location to assess the need for hospitalization
or treatment without prior authorization.
[CALEA 41.2.7a]
COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD (CSB) - The point of entry into the publicly funded
system of services for mental health, intellectual disability, and substance abuse. CSBs
provide pre-admission screening services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
CRISIS Common name for the organization within the Richmond Behavioral Health
Authority (RBHA) that conducts pre-admission health screenings for patients accessing
the publicly funded system of services for mental health, intellectual disability, and
substance abuse.
CRISIS TRIAGE CENTER (CTC) - A collaborative, grant-funded center designed to
facilitate the timely evaluation of persons being subjected to the ECO process. The
Page 2 of 14 General Order 06-17 (07/08/2025)
PERSONS IN MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS
G.
H.
CTC is utilized when officers have taken someone into custody based on their own
observations or other information where an officer feels they have probable cause to
believe the subject meets the qualifying criteria listed in Virginia Code § 37.2-808
(paperless E