Police chiefs sound alarm for mentally ill: report

VICTORIA – Canada’s top cops say police are increasingly the first line of contact for people suffering from a mental illness.

The Mental Health Association of Canada, in conjunction with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, will release a report today examining police interactions with the mentally ill.

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Saskatoon Police chief Clive Weighill, the association’s newly elected president, says those people need the health system, not the justice system.

He’s urging police across the country to work with local health, mental health, education and social service providers on a joint strategy.

More than 400 law enforcement leaders from civilian and military police are attending the annual gathering of the police chiefs in Victoria.

Delegates have passed four resolutions this year, including one that urges the federal government to approve a roadside drug-screening device.