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Santa Barbara, Calif. – The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office Behavioral Sciences Unit has completed the first in a series of week-long, 40-hour Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) courses, bringing together deputies and co-response clinicians for intensive instruction designed to improve responses to individuals experiencing behavioral health crises.
This specialized 40-hour course builds upon the eight hours of CIT training deputies have already received and reflects the Sheriff’s Office ongoing commitment to crisis intervention response preparedness. With the addition of 31 new graduates, the total number of CIT trained personnel now approaches 120 deputies. One additional class is anticipated, which will further expand the agency’s crisis intervention capabilities. All deputies, custody deputies and communications dispatchers have received an 8-hour CIT training course.