Cumberland County approves MOU to place mental‑health crisis liaison with sheriff’s deputies

Cumberland County commissioners voted to authorize a memorandum of understanding with the Opportunity Alliance to place a crisis response liaison who will work alongside the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office on mental‑health related calls.

The measure, presented at a workshop and later moved for formal approval during the regular meeting, aims to reduce repeated law‑enforcement responses to people in crisis by providing a mental‑health professional who can assist with on‑scene de‑escalation, follow‑up referrals and longer‑term case management.

Chief Deputy Eric Pellerin told commissioners the county has seen a sharp increase in mental‑health calls and described several high‑resource incidents in 2023 and 2024 that illustrated the limits of law‑enforcement‑only responses. He said the county has drafted an annually renewable MOU with Opportunity Alliance and that the program would begin with one crisis response liaison covering the 15 communities the sheriff’s office patrols, with initial focus on Gray and Standish because of higher call volumes.

Michelle Hansen, senior director of crisis services at the Opportunity Alliance, described the organization’s role as a mobile crisis provider and its existing contracts with other agencies. “We take 50,000 calls a year,” Hansen said, describing the alliance’s work on the statewide crisis lines and its ability to bill MaineCare, private insurers and other payors for services. She said the partnership would allow a “warm handoff” between deputies and the liaison and that the provider can follow up with clients after the initial response.

Pellerin said the county would not pay a direct operating cost for the MOU; funding for the liaison’s services would come through Maine DHHS contracts and billable claims to MaineCare and other insurers. He also said the sheriff’s office would retain limited field vetting and oversight because the liaison will have access to law‑enforcement information systems. The county indicated the position would be a “crawl, walk, run” rollout and that deputies could refer individuals for follow‑up even when the liaison could not be present.

Commissioners discussed operational limits such as radio and cellular coverage in rural areas and the practicality of sending a non‑law‑enforcement responder to remote scenes. Pellerin and Hansen said early deployment would focus on follow‑ups and known, lower‑risk situations, with the goal of expanding joint responses as experience and trust grew.

The board voted unanimously to approve review and execution of the MOU and to move forward with the pilot. The MOU as presented allows either party to withdraw with 30 days’ written notice and will be revisited annually.

Implementation details remain to be finalized, including onboarding timelines, exact start date and the process dispatch will use to route calls to the liaison. Commissioners and presenters said they expect the program to relieve repeated calls for service, reduce arrests and hospitalizations in some cases, and limit use of force by providing sustained follow‑up services that law enforcement alone cannot supply.

Evidence spans from the meeting record show the topic was introduced in the workshop presentation by the sheriff’s office and Opportunity Alliance and concluded with a unanimous vote during the regular meeting.