Who:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Department of Detention and Corrections (DDC)
Patrol Operation Bureau
-CIT/CISM Section

National Alliance on Mental Illness, Pinellas County, Florida (NAMI)

Pinellas County CIT Committee

39 Deputies From:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office DDC

What: 
All is set for the second Department of Detention and Corrections Crisis Intervention Team training and graduation.

When: 
The training will be held from Monday, April 11, 2016 to Friday, April 15, 2016. The graduation ceremony will be held at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, April 15, 2016.

Where: 
The training will be held at the Pinellas County Jail located at 14400 49^th Street North in Clearwater. The graduation ceremony will be held at the Sheriff's Office Administration Building located at 10750 Ulmerton Rd, Largo, Fl.

Why/How: 
All is set for the second Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Department of Detention and Corrections Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training and graduation.

39 deputies will participate in the training that will be held from Monday, April 11, 2016 to Friday, April 15, 2016 at the Pinellas County Jail. The graduation ceremony is scheduled for Friday, April 15, 2016 at 3:30 p.m. at the Sheriff’s Office Administration Building.

This is the 17th year since the establishment of CIT in Pinellas County and the second class specifically designed for deputies at the jail. Currently a three year plan is in effect to get all DDC Deputies trained.

In 1999, Pinellas County Mental Health/Substance Abuse Coalition conducted the first CIT course in Florida and has been instrumental in promoting the program throughout the state.

This DDC Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Program is a specialized training and practice for correctional deputies. The cornerstone of CIT is a 40-hour course taught, free of charge, by mental health professionals, law enforcement officers, persons with a mental illness diagnosis and advocates.

The training includes essential information about mental illnesses and how to recognize it; information about the local mental health system; de-escalation skills; and the opportunity to learn first-hand from consumers and family members about their experiences.

Media is invited to cover any of the days of training and the graduation. The first four days will be at the jail complex and last day will be at the Sheriff’s Office.

Media interested in covering this training or graduation, please contact the Sheriff’s Public Information Office at (727) 582-6221. Cpl. Kelley is the coordinator and can be reached at (727) 582-6200.