Ohio has trained more than 3,000 police officers how to deal with people who have mental health problems.
Andrew Savada of the Streetsboro Police says THESE days, when he encounters a criminal suspect or troublemaker with symptoms of mental illness, he drops the "tough-guy" approach he used to use all the time. Instead, Savada says he uses the approach he learned in crisis intervention training.
Police say this new approach has two advantage: it gets treatment for citizens who need it, and it helps keep police officers from being injured or killed.