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BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) — Police chiefs in eight Massachusetts communities have been awarded a $135,000 grant to fund the continuation and expansion of initiatives to help people with mental health problems and divert them from the criminal justice system.
The police partnership was developed through Concord District Court and the Regional Jail Diversion Program. It is managed by police in Acton, Bedford, Carlisle, Concord, Lexington, Lincoln, Maynard and Hanscom Air Force Base.
The grant from the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health will be split over the next three fiscal years.
As part of the coalition's model, police departments will work with a clinical coordinator, who will train officers in mental health first aid and to serve on a crisis intervention team.
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