22 Graduate with Maui’s 5th Crisis Intervention Team

5th Crisis Intervention Team graduation. May 2015. Courtesy photo.

By Wendy Osher

Twenty-two individuals were added to the Maui Police Department’s Crisis Intervention Team during the program’s fifth graduation ceremony, held on Friday, May 1, 2015.

In addition to 11 officers, the graduating class also included 11 individuals from various partner agencies and departments.  The latest graduating class included a Maui judge, a Sergeant from Australia, a Maui Corrections Officer, a prosecutor, and a mental health employee.

The team was established in 2013 as the first of its kind in the state, utilizing community partnerships to better respond to critical incidents involving individuals with mental illness.

Officials with the Maui Police Department say the CIT handles incidents involving mentally ill individuals and those in crisis with care and expertise, ensuring that such individuals receive a response which is appropriate to the needs of the person involved.

All participants were trained in mental health and crisis intervention response under the tutelage of Dr. Dara Rampersad.

Program leaders say the Crisis Intervention Team program brings both the police and the community together for common goals of safety, understanding, and service to mentally ill patients and their families.

Graduates from the 5th CIT class include: Lieutenant Jeraul Pladera; Sergeant Michael McCutcheon; Officer Brian Kibby; Officer Max Kincaid; Officer Ryan Nagata; Officer Reid Okazaki; Officer Robert Partridge; Officer Paul Pomainville; Officer Chad Romero; Officer Ryan Tengan; Officer Shane Yoshida; Judge Richard Bissen Second Circuit Court; Cpt. Richard Bista Maui Memorial Medical Center; Sgt. Matthew Moloney Queensland, Australia; Deputy Leedo Anderson Sheriff’s Office; Deputy Andy Feliciano Sheriff’s Office; Sgt. Pita Totau Maui Correction; Ralph Mintz American Medical Response; Michelle Notestone American Medical Response; Jennilee Raphael State Hawaii Probation; Brandon Segal Prosecutor’s Office; and Lydia Hockridge-Gentry Maui Community Mental Health Center.