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King County 'TRUE' co‑response team described to Woodinville council; staff and council discuss service gaps
Summary
Chief Myers and Casey Byrne described the Therapeutic Response Unit (TRUE), a King County co‑response program pairing mental‑health professionals with deputies for 911 calls and follow‑up; councilmembers praised the approach and discussed gaps including transportation and coordinated service access.
Chief Myers and city staff introduced the King County Sheriff's Office Therapeutic Response Unit (TRUE), a co‑response team that pairs a mental‑health professional with a deputy to respond to 911 calls and to provide follow‑up. Chief Myers said the unit ‘‘started up kind of within the last 2 years’’ and has been operating in 2024 and 2025; he said Woodinville receives at least one TRUE clinician day per week and that clinicians ride in a vehicle with deputies but are not armed.
Casey Byrne (identified by Chief Myers as a mental‑health professional providing co‑response) described the unit’s field role and gave specific examples of 911 calls where clinician presence helped de‑escalate situations, coordinate follow‑up and connect individuals to services. Byrne said TRUE participates in regional behavioral‑health coordination with Core Connect, Recovery Navigators and Mobile Crisis and highlighted work that ranges from de‑escalating people in crisis, supporting children on scene, to helping connect an unhoused person with family and court‑date information.
Councilmembers thanked Byrne and Chief Myers and asked whether the unit has sufficient follow‑up resources and transportation for people needing crisis services. Byrne said Core Connect and recovery‑peer programs fill important roles for case management and transportation in some cases, but that transportation to crisis centers remains a gap and that service access can be uneven outside core urban areas. She suggested the council consider a local needs assessment and inventory of services to identify shortfalls.
Council expressed support for the co‑response model and discussed continuing coordination between the city and county programs.
