Excessive Force in Handling Mentally Ill Individuals

When Crisis Meets Cruelty: Police and Mental Illness

After a mental health crisis, you expect help, not heartbreak. But in far too many cities, those emergency calls end with flashing lights, trauma, and sometimes, the unimaginable. When police show up unprepared, the results can be devastating. If you’re here, there’s a good chance you’re looking for answers or accountability. Families just like yours are turning to experienced excessive force attorneys to figure out what went wrong and what to do next.

Every state handles police force differently. In New York, there are specific use-of-force rules. Go to Vermont, New Hampshire, or Maine, and you’ll find a patchwork of other regulations or locally set policies. That matters because what’s considered “reasonable force” in Manhattan might be handled entirely differently in Montpelier.

If your loved one was hurt or killed during a police encounter in New York, Horn Wright, LLP is here. Our firm can help families pursue accountability and justice with compassion and skill.

Training Gaps and Dangerous Assumptions in the NYPD

Most police officers aren’t mental health professionals. But when someone is in crisis, that’s exactly what they need.

Internal reviews into police practices show glaring gaps in training and accountability. Sometimes, these failures lead to false imprisonment, where someone in distress ends up handcuffed instead of helped.

The NYPD responds to nearly 500 mental health-related 911 calls every single day. That’s around 180,000 per year. The system’s overwhelmed. Officers are stretched thin. And the right kind of help too often is missing.

Even the National Institute of Justice has raised red flags, pointing out that police are stuck carrying the mental health burden without backup from trained professionals.

• Most NYPD officers get just a few hours of Crisis Intervention Training
• Many precincts still lack dedicated mental health teams
• And diagnoses like schizophrenia, PTSD, or bipolar disorder are still wildly misunderstood

All it takes is one bad read, seeing fear as aggression, and everything spirals. That’s exactly the kind of scenario compassionate and analytic attorneys are trained to dissect.

And while New York State’s own Use of Force Model Policy calls for patience and de-escalation, it’s not always followed on the street.

From a Call for Help to Chaos: How Police Escalate Fast

Let’s say your brother’s having a mental health episode. He’s scared and confused. You call 911 hoping for help, but when the officers arrive, they come in hot, barking orders, grabbing at him.

When someone’s in crisis, time and tone matter. But police often mishandle and escalate things fast, especially when the person isn’t armed.

Someone having a psychotic break might not even understand commands. They may run, flinch, or freeze, not because they’re dangerous, but because they’re terrified.

Too much force and physical overreach clashes hard with the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Ignored Pleas on the Sidewalks

You tell them he’s off his meds. You beg them not to yell. But they ignore you.

Officers often brush aside families who know their loved one best. And it’s this kind of disregard that’s led to countless wrongful shootings.

You might’ve stood right there, heart pounding, saying the very thing that could’ve eased the moment, but no one paid attention.

It’s not just bad policing but also a failure of humanity. Even the Department of Justice’s Use of Force Policy urges caution, calm, and control. But on the ground, that message doesn’t always land.

Brutality in Broad Daylight: When Force Replaces Care

Tasers and Chokeholds: Tools Turned into Weapons

A Taser might seem like a "safer" option, but it’s still a weapon, especially when it’s used on someone in a mental health crisis who can’t follow orders.

And then there are chokeholds. New York banned them. Yet, banned doesn’t mean gone. They’re still being used, and the injuries that follow are devastating. That’s part of why police brutality lawsuits continue to be filed because this isn’t rare.

Officers are supposed to use only what’s necessary. That’s spelled out under Penal Law § 35.30. But when force becomes punishment, that crosses a legal and moral line.

Restraints That Crush Instead of Calm

Sometimes officers don’t fire a weapon. But instead, they hold someone down, pin their body, and pile on until breathing becomes impossible.

If you’ve seen the footage, or if you’ve lived it, you know exactly what follows. People lose air. They pass out. Some never wake up. All of it happening while they’re cuffed, face-down, and pleading for help.

These horrifying moments are the foundation for legal action against government overkill and negligence.

Death on the Streets, Silence in the Courts

After the death of Daniel Prude, a Black man suffering a severe mental health crisis, New York saw protests, resignations, and national scrutiny. Prude had been naked, handcuffed, and pinned to the ground by officers who responded to a 911 call for help. Instead of medical care, he was met with force.

Your loved one’s story might not have made the headlines. But that doesn’t make it any less real.

It keeps happening. A man with a knife, not charging. A woman tased until she stopped breathing. A brother beaten for yelling in public.

The pattern feels all too familiar to those injured at a protest where public cries for help or justice are met with physical force instead of empathy.

The ADA Isn’t Optional

The law makes it clear: if officers are aware, or should be, that someone’s dealing with a mental health issue, they have to shift how they respond. That’s what the Americans with Disabilities Act requires. 

But too often, officers skip that responsibility. And when they do, the resulting abuse isn’t just morally wrong. It crosses into illegal territory. 

When force is used to justify things like civil asset forfeiture, or to silence those in crisis, that’s a red flag, and it’s actionable.

When Cops Cross the Line: How Civil Rights Laws Can Fight Back

Some families think there’s nothing they can do. But if your loved one was hurt, there are laws that can fight back.

A Section 1983 claim gives you a way to hold police accountable for violating civil rights. That includes excessive force, wrongful detention, and more.

There’s also legal support rooted in civil rights litigation strategies, helping you push for both justice and change. These cases have led to settlements, policy shifts, and public exposure. No, it won’t fix the loss, but it can stop the silence.

Real Help After Unthinkable Harm

You’re dealing with pain, outrage, and a hundred unanswered questions. It’s okay to feel all of it.

Taking legal action isn’t about getting even but about speaking up. It’s about proving that what happened wasn’t right, and making sure no one else has to go through it.

To talk with excessive force attorneys who truly understand the law and what families like yours are going through, contact Horn Wright, LLP, today.