Exploring Alternatives to Policing

While calls to "defund the police" have made headlines, a new Stanford Law report "Safety Beyond Policing: Promoting Care Over Criminalization" explores alternatives to the use of police in sensitive situations such as mental health crises and in schools. Two of the report's co-authors, Professor Robert Weisberg and Stanford Law student Michelle Portillo discuss key questions about policing, shedding light on promising alternatives that have been piloted in a variety of places around the country—alternatives that deploy mental health professionals, saving lives, police resources, and funds.