Crisis Intervention Teams Center of Excellence
Mission
We will seek to develop and maintain partnerships with Oregon criminal justice and behavioral health agencies, organizations and service providers in order to develop and maintain a network of criminal justice and behavioral health professionals, behavioral health advocates, and consumers to promote excellence in law enforcement behavioral health training throughout Oregon.
Vision
The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) – Center for Policing Excellence (CPE) and The Oregon Center for Behavioral Health and Justice Integration (OCBHJI) are jointly committed to promoting the development of criminal justice behavioral health training programs, such as Crisis Intervention Teams and other specialized police response models, throughout Oregon. The objective of this partnership is to assist criminal justice and behavioral health agencies in providing a more effective and compassionate response to people experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The joint effort shall be known as the CIT Center of Excellence (CITCOE).
CIT Works
Research has demonstrated that CIT trained officers demonstrate more knowledge about mental health than non CIT trained officers. Additionally, CIT trained officers are more likely to make a mental health referral and less likely to make an arrest than non CIT trained officers.
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CIT trained officers who volunteered for the training do better on all these measures than those who were assigned to training, which highlights an important tenet of the Memphis Model to train officers who have volunteered. However, CIT trained officers who were assigned to training do better on all of the measure than those who haven’t been trained in CIT (https://mhttcnetwork.org/centers/southeast-mhttc/problem-criminalization-serious-mental-illness-part-2).
MEET THE TEAM
Stephanie Herro
Behavioral Health Program Coordinator
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Stephanie Herro started her law enforcement career as an Officer for the City of Beloit in her home state of Wisconsin. After relocating to Chicago, she discovered a passion for helping older adults and their families, particularly those living with Alzheimer’s disease or another type of dementia. Her career path led her to earn a Master of Arts in Gerontological Counseling and refocus her career on adult behavioral health and wellness.
Relocating to Oregon in 2014, Stephanie found herself developing statewide projects and policy on best practices in caring for older adults and people with disabilities. Over the last ten years, she continued her connection to law enforcement by working as a Reserve Officer with a local municipal agency, in addition to providing ongoing CIT, Mental Health First Aid, and regional agency training on dementia and older adult behavioral health. Stephanie also worked for the Portland Police Bureau as the department’s first Homeless Community Liaison, where she coordinated relationships between the Bureau and human services agencies to identify and improve collaboration opportunities.
Stephanie began her position as a Behavioral Health Program Coordinator with the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training in April of 2024. In this role, she facilitates classroom training, scenario-based learning, and curriculum development, in addition to coordinating regional CIT training and technical assistance. She is passionate about providing Oregon’s first responders with the understanding and necessary tools to successfully work with the state’s diverse population of communities.
Joe Miller
Behavioral Health Program Coordinator
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Joe Miller, an Air Force veteran, began his law enforcement career in 1988. With over 30 years in law enforcement, Joe has held positions in small city, rural county, and large city agencies, with the last 23 years as a police officer with Salem Police Department in Oregon. During his time in the Air Force, Joe also served overseas as a tactical team member with the Emergency Services Teams.
In civilian law enforcement, Joe served as a Patrol Officer, Corporal, Scuba Diver, Riot Team Member, Investigator, Defensive Tactics Instructor, and Hostage Negotiator. Joe has spent the last five years of his career assigned to the Behavioral Health Unit, responding to calls for service involving individuals in the middle of a mental health crisis.
Joe has been a member of the Salem Police Department's Tactical Negotiation Team since 2005, holding various positions as Forward Negotiator, Team Trainer, Cell Supervisor, and Team Leader. During his tenure, Joe has responded to and been involved in hundreds of crisis incidents of all types.
As a private consultant and trainer, Joe has worked with local hospitals, school districts, dispatch centers, and private businesses to develop and improve skills in defensive tactics, crisis communication, and de-escalation. After several years serving as an adjunct instructor at Chemeketa Community College, Joe founded Thane Training Concepts in 2008. Joe is also an associate instructor for the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) in both the mental health and defensive tactics disciplines.
Joe has received numerous commendations related to his de-escalation skills as well as two life-saving awards and the Salem Police Department's Officer of the Year award. Joe is the current Oregon representative to the Western States Hostage Negotiators Association and is actively involved in training and other issues affecting Hostage Negotiators from Oregon and across the Pacific Northwest.
Ridg Medford
Behavioral Health and Justice Specialist
Ridg served as a certified police officer for over 16 years. He served his entire law enforcement career with the Ontario Police Department and held his advanced police certification through the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST). During his time with the Police Department, he served in many roles, including school resource officer, motor officer, and detective. He has also served as the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) coordinator for Malheur County. He is a mental health first aid instructor, a trauma informed care instructor, a qualified sequential intercept model mapping workshop facilitator, a certified crisis intervention team coordinator, a juvenile fire-setter intervention specialist, and a nationally certified anger management specialist. Ridg is passionate about teaching and has taught crisis intervention and officer wellness topics at local, regional, and international levels. He is an acting board member of Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) International, serving as 1st Vice President. He also serves on the national advisory board for the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) CIT ASSIST program.
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Ridg is very community driven and serves or has served on several boards, including being the chairperson of the board for the Housing Authority of Malheur and Harney Counties. Ridg is a passionate outdoorsman and can often be found in the mountains with his family and friends.
