Bass Demands Comprehensive External Audit of LAPD Mental Health Interventions
This is the summary of the article by Libor Jany, Staff Writer of the LA Times on June 22, 2026. For the full version of the original article, please visit https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2026-06-22/supreme-court-says-ex-lapd-officer-may-be-sued-for-excessive-force-in-street-shooting
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has characterized the Los Angeles Police Department’s instruction on managing mental health emergencies as deeply deficient, directing an outside examination of municipal policing protocols following several violent confrontations involving people experiencing psychiatric crises.
The mayor’s action, formalized through Executive Directive No. 21, instructs the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners to hire an independent consultancy possessing dual expertise in public safety operations and behavioral healthcare crisis management. The commissioned study will assess LAPD procedures, instructional regimens, dispatch practices, and restraint methods, delivering actionable recommendations to the mayor and police commission within a six-month window.
A primary concern motivating the evaluation is the disparity in preparation between frontline officers and specialized divisions. While tactical units like SWAT receive dedicated crisis intervention schooling, everyday patrol officers—who handle the majority of community calls—receive minimal ongoing instruction once they leave the police academy. Bass observed that continuing education in division stations often amounts to brief training video segments screened during pre-shift roll calls.
Under the directive, investigators will audit five years of critical encounters, focusing on incidents involving use of force or custodial deaths where individuals exhibited signs of psychiatric distress, substance impairment, or intellectual and physical disabilities. The review will also analyze successful outcomes where situations were de-escalated without physical measures, alongside custodial handling inside holding facilities and psychological care available to officers after critical events.
The policy directive comes amid a crowded political backdrop, as Bass navigates a reelection contest against City Councilmember Nithya Raman. Both officials have questioned the city’s reliance on armed officers for distress calls, with Raman pointing out the scarcity of non-police municipal alternatives dispatched through the emergency 911 switchboard.
Simultaneously, local leaders remain divided on reform strategies. While city audits have encouraged scaling up unarmed crisis response teams, council members such as Eunisses Hernandez contend that resolving these emergencies requires diverting calls away from armed personnel altogether rather than merely retraining police. In response, Bass noted that modernizing internal police practices and building out civilian behavioral health networks must happen in tandem to prevent unnecessary harm and safeguard both the public and law enforcement personnel.