Mental health crises linked to almost half of all deaths or serious injuries in NSW police operations

Law Enforcement Conduct Commission reveals details of 157 ‘critical incident’ investigations

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Almost half the people involved in critical incidents with New South Wales police over the past five years were experiencing a mental health crisis, while the number of Indigenous people killed and seriously injured doubled last financial year, according to a new report.

The NSW Law Enforcement Conduct Commission’s five-yearly report into “critical incidents” included seven recommendations including an urgent call for better mental health training for officers. A critical incident is a police operation that results in a death or serious injury.