The traditional police response to service calls involving substance use disorder (SUD) is focused on short-term interventions—life-saving treatment, detox, and enforcement or arrest. In contrast, law enforcement programs focused on nonarrest pathways to treatment and sobriety are a crime reduction and long-term problem-solving strategy that can have a positive impact on community-police relations. For agencies that employ “pre-arrest diversion” or “deflection” strategies, the initial response remains the same as the traditional approach, but what happens after that initial contact can lead to life-changing outcomes.

The Faribault, Minnesota, Police Department is not unlike the majority of law enforcement agencies in the United States. Calls for service involving individuals experiencing SUD, including overdose calls, have increased significantly in the past decade as the United States’ opioid crisis has grown.

Faribault has mirrored U.S. trends regarding property crime. FBI 2022 crime data show a 7.1 percent increase in property crime across the United States.¹ Locally, Faribault experienced an approximate 10 percent increase in property crime in 2022, specifically related to thefts from vehicles, catalytic converters, and scrap metal. This trend was driven by a small number of prolific offenders who committed multiple thefts and used the proceeds to support their purchases of controlled substances. The majority of local property crimes—theft, criminal damage to property, and burglary—are driven by individuals whose criminal behavior is fueled by SUD.