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Council deadlocks, defeats endorsement of phased community responder plan
Summary
After hours of public testimony and council debate, a proposed city resolution endorsing a phased community responder program failed in a 4–4 tie. Supporters cited national examples and task-force work; opponents raised concerns about scale, dispatch integration and staffing.
A divided Knoxville City Council declined to endorse a phased alternative (community) responder program after lengthy public testimony and council debate, producing a 4–4 tie that left the matter unresolved.
Supporters of the resolution — including members of Knoxville HART, NAMI Knoxville and other advocates — told council the task force assembled by the city and county produced a business and service plan that merits endorsement. Elizabeth Roland, a task-force participant, cited national experience and the task force’s work, saying the report found “out of that 89 programs across the country . . . no one has been killed or seriously injured. Zero.” She urged council to move…
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