Torrance Mental Evaluation Team (TMET)

The Torrance Police Department proudly features many specialized details that play a critical role in the overall effectiveness of the Department. In an effort to explore different strategies to vastly improve the outcomes of encounters between law enforcement and individuals suffering a mental health crisis, the Torrance Police Department created the Torrance Mental Evaluation Team (TMET) detail in 2015.

TMET is a field-based, co-response team that has partnered with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (DMH) and currently staff one clinical psychologist and two Torrance Police Detectives trained in mental health crisis response. The primary function of the team is to provide referrals, intervention and/or placement of individuals suffering or needing acute mental health assistance into mental health facilities. The mission of TMET is to reduce the potential for violence during police contacts involving people suffering from mental illness while simultaneously assessing and locating the proper channel of mental health services available to the individual.

In addition to their primary field-based duties, TMET is tasked with keeping the department up to date on various case laws involving mental health, continually looking for ways to improve our response to persons with mental illness, and to provide continual support and training to members of our patrol division to better handle and respond to calls involving mental illness.