Lt. Molly J. Harris from the Ohio State Highway Patrol speaks to Crisis Intervention Team training participants Friday at their graduation at Logan County Job and Family Services. (EXAMINER PHOTO | Mandy Loehr)
One of the largest groups of local law enforcement officers graduated from the Crisis Intervention Team program Friday, Jan. 17, with approximately 30 individuals representing agencies from Logan, Champaign and Union Counties, all of whom came away from the training with practical knowledge of how to assist individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
Featured graduation speaker Lt. Molly J. Harris from the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Office of Personnel, Employee Wellness, said the CIT program she attended about 20 years ago was one of the best trainings she’s ever completed. It influenced the future course of her career, as she now has the privilege of overseeing the state’s CIT program, building relationships with local behavioral health organizations in all 88 Ohio counties and with local law enforcement as well.
Lt. Harris had important advice for the new grads Friday at the 40-hour CIT program, hosted by the Mental Health Drug and Alcohol Services Board of Logan and Champaign Counties. While utilizing their training and carefully looking after the public’s health on the job, she urged them to not neglect their own mental health and the mental well-being of their fellow officers as well.
Crisis Intervention Team graduates gather together Friday after their 40 hours of training this week, hosted by the Mental Health Drug and Alcohol Services Board of Logan and Champaign Counties, joined by Mercy, a therapy dog from the Marysville Police Division. (EXAMINER PHOTO | Mandy Loehr)
She related a troubling statistic — in 2024, there were six law enforcement officers who took their own lives in Ohio, and also four retired officers who completed suicide. This number of suicide deaths last year is higher than the line of duty deaths in the state.
“Those barriers to getting help need to be reduced, and we need to break the stigma around mental health. Thankfully, things are changing in our culture, and that is very encouraging,” said Lt. Harris, who during her 28 years in the OSHP included serving as the post commander of the Marysville Post.
The lieutenant said at the beginning of her career almost three decades ago, “We didn’t talk about our mental state. If you did, the stereotype was that you were weak and you didn’t deserve the job.
“That’s all b.s.” she emphasized, recalling how her field training officer told her, “You’d better not cry,” when they rolled up on her first fatal crash scene.
“You are a stronger person if you admit you have a problem and when you reach out for help.”
The traumatic situations that troopers, deputies and officers encounter can take a major toll. Lt. Harris recounted one night when she had to make six separate death notifications to families following a fatal plane crash.
“The average law enforcement officer, at the end of a 30-year career, has been through 120-150 critical incidents. They’ve also been through 800 everyday smaller traumas as well that they might not pay as much attention to. It’s part of the job and we keep ourselves moving.”
Bellefontaine Police Department Officer Savarrah Sullivan, center, receives CIT Officer of the Year honors Friday, accompanied by BPD Lt. Jason Lapp and Russells Point Police Department Chief Joe Freyhof, who helps facilitate the CIT program. (EXAMINER PHOTO | Mandy Loehr)
With all of the weight of traumatic events, Lt. Harris likened this experience to the story of A Christmas Carol and the character Jacob Marley, who was bound down by the weight of his chains. All of those crisis event experiences can feel like being chained down by a similar very heavy weight, she said.
“There might be a time when you feel like you’re falling into a black hole. But please remember that you are surrounded by people who care about and resources to help,” she told the CIT graduates.
The featured speaker detailed several programs available to first responders to help process and heal from traumatic events, including the First Responders Bridge, a free three-day conference offered in Columbus; along with Ohio ASSIST (Aiding Services with Incident Survival Techniques) post-incident seminars, offering counseling, peer support and education; and also Frontline Freedom, which provides outdoor recreational adventures to renew officers’ spirits.
The graduation also featured the CIT Officers of the Year for Logan and Champaign counties, honoring law enforcement for their excellence in stepping up to provide that critical resource and de-escalating abilities during particularly fragile mental health situations.
Logan County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Justin Taylor received the Officer of the Year honor for his department, with the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Logan and Champaign Counties President Robin Barton jumping up to give Deputy Taylor a hug and congratulate him. Barton related that the deputy “went above and beyond” to help her family during a recent call for service and crisis situation involving her mother.
Logan County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Justin Taylor, right, is congratulated for his Officer of the Year Award by NAMI President Robin Barton. (EXAMINER PHOTO | Mandy Loehr)
Bellefontaine Police Department Officer Savarrah Sullivan received the Officer of the Year honors for the BPD, and DeGraff Police Chief Brentlinger received the Logan County Small Department Officer of the Year.
In Champaign County, Champaign County Sheriff’s Deputy Tim Morris, Urbana Police Department Officer Tristen Ruef and North Lewisburg Police Department Officer Trent Davis received Officer of the Year Awards.
The 40-hour Crisis Intervention Training hosted by the Mental Health Drug and Alcohol Services Board of Logan and Champaign Counties this week at Logan County Job and Family Services included a classroom portion of the training covering mental health disorders, substance use disorders, trauma-informed policing, legal issues, NAMI, a panel/lived experiences, post traumatic stress disorders/traumatic brain injuries, military and veteran cultural considerations, & ICAT (Integrating Communications, Assessment, and Tactics) Critical Decision-Making Model.
The 2025 CIT program graduates include: Winona Barstow, TCN Behavioral Health; Bryan Bresky, Ohio State Highway Patrol; Joseph Brenner, Haven Franks, Alex Howard, McKenzie Smith, Bennie Stacy, Justin Taylor and Hollee Woodcock, Logan County Sheriff’s Office; Anthony Carothers, Kollin Stollar and Maguire Stratton, Bellefontaine Police Department; Brandon Dearwester, Bellefontaine Municipal Court; Eric Collier, Luke Heilman, Logan Leeds and Alec Posterli, Marysville Police Division; Robert Condict, Jason Snipes, Rachel Snyder and Brady Weaver, Union County Sheriff’s Office; Robin Heminger, Emelee Abbott, Riley Hackett and Sarah Lewis, Coleman Services; Tristen Ruef, Lance Turner, Urbana Police Department; and Matt Fritz, Plain City Police Department.
