Interim chief: Wichita police need to change mental health, juvenile arrest policies
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Death of Wichita teen at Sedgwick County facility
Cedric Lofton’s foster father called authorities in September 2021 seeking help because the 17-year-old was hallucinating and needed to go to a mental health facility. Instead, police took him to the Sedgwick County Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center, where he had to be resuscitated after he was held facedown for more than 30 minutes during an altercation. He died two days later.
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Interim Chief Lem Moore says Wichita police need to change how they respond to mental health crises and interact with juveniles.
Moore said community calls for reform prompted him to meet with representatives from the City Council, the city manager’s office and legal department about what the police department can do better.
“There are things that are going on that can’t wait, that need to be addressed right here and right now — especially with mental health,” Moore said in an interview Tuesday. He replaces Chief Gordon Ramsay, who stepped down March 1 to return to Minnesota.
The department has come under scrutiny in recent months for police interactions with 17-year-old Cedric Lofton on the day he was fatally restrained by county corrections officers.
Police responded to a 911 call from Lofton’s foster father, who said the teen was suffering from a mental health crisis and needed help. Police ultimately took Lofton to the county’s juvenile intake facility instead of the hospital after Lofton resisted arrest.
“I’ve had meetings with [city officials] already to look at different things that the community has brought to my attention, when it comes to dealing with juveniles, when it comes to dealing with mental health,” Moore said.
“A lot of organizations within the city actually don’t even see mental health as a medical issue, which is a problem.”
Moore, who has been with the police force for 31 years, said calls for reform shouldn’t have to wait for the city to name its next full-time chief, a process expected to take at least five months.
He said the police department isn’t always the agency best equipped to respond to mental health calls. Oftentimes, they take the lead by default, he said.
“When there is a mental health issue, the police department is called. Clearly not a criminal matter, but yet we’re called,” Moore said. “And that’s because the police department can’t say no.
“Our policies deal with trying to get individuals the help they need. However, with mental health, taking them to the hospital tells me that’s a medical issue and that they probably should be going in an EMS unit.”
Kevin Lanterman, interim director of Sedgwick County EMS, said his agency plays an active role in responding to mental health calls and providing transport when necessary.
“Unfortunately, there is no single first response agency best equipped to deal with the unique circumstances of all behavioral health crisis,” Lanterman said in an email statement. “Persons experiencing mental and behavioral health problems present in a number of ways and require different types and levels of specialized treatment.”
He said EMS paramedics are limited in the care options they can provide, “both legally and medically” for patients experiencing such crises.
“For example, a paramedic does not have the same statutory emergency detention authority of a law enforcement officer to seize and transport for involuntarily admission, individuals experiencing mental health/substance use disorder symptoms with intact decision capacity,” Lanterman said.
Contributing: Michael Stavola of The Eagle
This story was originally published March 9, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
