The Honolulu City Auditor recently released a report noting that it had suspended its audit of the Crisis Outreach Response and Engagement program. According to the report, unreliable government-provided data and frequent program changes made it impossible to determine whether CORE is effective or a judicious use of public funds.
The suspended audit reflects the foundational problems at the heart of CORE’s operations: unclear goals, weak accountability, and a failure to follow proven mobile crisis response models.
Advocates and elected officials have repeatedly called on CORE to align with national best practices. Instead, the program has continued to operate without reliable data while moving further from those practices by partnering with law enforcement to involuntarily hospitalize people in crisis.
To be clear, Honolulu needs an effective mobile crisis response program. This critique is offered in service of building one that makes our communities safer…