Full Notification

Today, the South Carolina Department of Mental Health announced its partnership with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office in their Community Crisis & Response (CCRI) initiative. After several meetings with CCRI staff to discuss implementation, Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner provided two newly hired CCRI mental health counselors with offices at the Sheriff's Office Law Enforcement Center, 2001 Duke Street in Beaufort and at the Sheriff’s Office substation, 70 Shelter Cove Lane on Hilton Head Island. Over the past few weeks, the two counselors met with Sheriff’s Office patrol shifts and have participated in ride-along programs with deputies to acclimate to their new work environment and to get a better feel for the situations law enforcement officers encounter on patrol.

The CCRI mental health counselors will provide on-site emergency psychiatric screening and assessment available 24/7 to our community. By working side-by-side, CCRI mental health counselors and Sheriff’s Office deputies hope to gain a better understanding of the needs of those affected by mental illness in our community in the hopes of limiting their exposure to the criminal justice system and preventing unnecessary emergency room visits through intervention. We look forward to having the resource of two CCRI mental health counselors on-site at the Sheriff’s Office to better address the needs of Beaufort County’s residents and guests.
 
Please see the attached SCDMH press release and the brochure, which includes contact information for CCRI. 

We appreciate your partnership and continued commitment to the safety of our community.