The state of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma City Police Department violated federal laws, unnecessarily institutionalized adults with behavioral health disabilities or put them at risk while Oklahoma City's police department engaged "in a pattern or practice of conduct that discriminates against people with behavioral health disabilities," the U.S. Justice Department charges. A report issued Friday said Oklahoma doesn't provide sufficient services for people with behavioral health disabilities to prevent unnecessary hospitalization. The report accused the state and Oklahoma City of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, USA Today reports.
"The city defaults to sending police as the sole responders in most cases," the report said.that when Oklahoma City police do respond to situations involving residents with behavioral health issues, they sometimes fail to help, escalate crisis or even unnecessarily resort to force. "People do not get the help they need and they are taken to the hospital to begin the cycle again," the report said. Gov Kevin Stitt responded that, "This is another Biden administration overreach on their way out the door." Stitt said the state Mental Health Department is "working hard to reform our mental health system, but [it] can't do that if they're burdened with heavy handed, out of touch mandates from the federal government." State Attorney General Gentner Drummond said he was of "yet another top-down approach in this 11th hour report by the Biden Administration’s Department of Justice." The DOJ report "appears to be an attempt to bully Oklahoma into compliance with ever-changing and undefined targets," Drummond said.
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