OPS mental health advisory council to shape police response to crises

The Ottawa Police Service will be establishing a Mental Health Advisory Council to help shape its response to mental health crises and substance use-related calls, months after an inquest into Abdirahman Abdi’s death was conducted last year. Photo by Jean Levac /POSTMEDIAArticle content

The Ottawa Police Service is establishing a mental health advisory council to help shape its response to mental health crises and substance use-related calls.

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A report on the new advisory council was tabled at the Ottawa Police Services Board on April 28, a little over four months after an inquest into the death of Abdirahman Abdi wrapped up.

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Abdi, a Somali-Canadian man, died in a Ottawa hospital in July 2016 after Const. Daniel Montsion and Const. David Weir responded to a 911 call alleging a man was groping women at a Hintonburg coffee shop.

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Abdi, 38, appeared to be in a mental health crisis at the time, and was beaten during the arrest, the inquest heard last year.

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Abdi’s death sparked discussions, protests and marches. The Justice for Abdirahman Coalition said the death exposed racial inequities within the OPS, as well as “disappointing failures” in police training and mental health response.

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In 2021, Abdi’s family and the police board reached a confidential settlement in the family’s lawsuit against police.

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Last December, the inquest jury deemed Abdi’s death a homicide (inquest jurors are required to make a finding on the cause of death, but that carries no legal liability) and made more than 50 recommendations aimed at preventing similar deaths.

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The inquest recommendations included a mental health advisory council (MHAC), which will develop a OPS-wide strategy to improve outcomes when police respond to mental health crises.

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The MHAC is to foster public trust and internal change, while also identifying opportunities where the force can improve, OPS Chief Eric Stubbs said in the report.

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“The OPS recognizes that true progress requires meaningful collaboration with the communities most affected by police interactions involving mental health,” he said.

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A dedicated “mental health change initiative” was established after the inquest and has begun foundational work to develop a collaborative model for mental health crisis response, said the report.

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The MHAC should include executive leadership at the OPS and peer-run, community-based organizations that represent people with lived experiences dealing with mental health crises.

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“The MHAC will play a vital role in shaping mental health crisis response strategies, identifying gaps in services, and advising on best practices to enhance community and police response to mental health and substance use,” said Stubbs. “They will ensure that OPS mental health initiatives are informed by those with lived experiences and subject-matter expertise.”