Officer Mike Ferrell has been with the Greer Police Department since 2010 and recently stepped into a new position.
“Up until November I was a patrol sergeant, and in November I took the position of crisis, intervention officer,” Officer Ferrell said.
It’s a role Officer Ferrell asked to create after seeing a need in the community.
“We deal with a lot of people and make contact with a lot of people who are in crisis, whether that be a mental health situation or homelessness or drug addiction,” Ferrell said.
Before his role, officers had two options for people in crisis—jail or the hospital.
“I really felt that there was a need for us to have a more deliberate response with what we do as a police department,” Ferrell said.
Now, Officer Ferrell is able to spend time on finding solutions for this section of our community.
“Sometimes that takes a little bit longer than your response to a call as a patrol officer,” Ferrell said.
Pointing them to organizations across the Upstate that will cater to their crisis.
“I tried to connect the people who are in crisis to those existing resources that are already out there,” Ferrell said.
Making connections, and making a difference, is what Officer Ferrell says is truly fulfilling for him as an officer and as a person.
“This is a part of our community. There are people in our community that have mental health problems that have drug problems that are experiencing homelessness,” Ferrell said.
And this is an effort he hopes to see grow in the coming years.
“My hope is that like a year from now that we look back, and we see the repeat calls for service that we had for somebody who is in crisis that that decreases,” Ferrell said.