Mental Health Unit

Welcome to the Cedar Park Police Department’s Mental Health Unit (MHU). Please feel free to call or email us if you have any questions.

Our mission is to encourage mental health and wellness in the Cedar Park community by providing resources, support, and a compassionate response.

ABOUT US

Modern policing requires the ability to respond to individuals experiencing serious mental health crises. Our Mental Health Unit (MHU) is a unit of specially trained officers committed to safely and effectively addressing the needs of persons with mental illnesses, link them to appropriate services, and divert them from the criminal justice system if appropriate. The Mental Health Unit is a collaboration between the Cedar Park Police Department (CPPD) and Bluebonnet Trails Community Services (BTCS), and works in partnership with mental health professionals in Williamson and Travis County, as well as advocacy groups, such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Through these collaborations, CPPD works with the community, surrounding agencies, hospitals, and mental health facilities to develop multifaceted strategies for responding to those experiencing mental health crises.

Mental Health Unit Logo

Our officers must determine if the criminal activity is a direct result of the mental illness. The mental health consumer who is found walking in the street or trespassing on private property because he/she is disoriented, or hallucinating may not be best served by spending time in jail. Mental health consumers who have decompensated to this extent should be diverted from the criminal justice system on a case by case basis. CPPD strives to respond as professionally, safely, and humanely as possible. We strive to work with our community partners, ever improving our response to persons with mental illness. We continually work at developing new strategies and techniques that will keep the Cedar Park Police Department the premiere law enforcement agency regarding specialized police responses to the mentally ill in the Central Texas area. We respond to any location within the City of Cedar Park, 24/7.

For more information on our Mental Health Unit, please contact:

[email protected] | 512-260-4600