Portland Police say the number of calls they receive regarding suicides and mentally ill people have increased 90 percent since 2001.
Mayor Sam Adams called for a review of suicide calls after Brad Morgan was shot by officers last month. He was suicidal and carrying a replica handgun.
The review found police deal with an average of three suicide calls each day.
Police chief Mike Reese says officers usually arrive in time and save lives. But he stressed, five crisis centers and hospital clinics for mentally ill people have closed since 2001 and the police are increasingly coming into contact with disturbed people.
Derald Walker, of Cascadia Behavioral Health, thanked police for drawing attention to the issue.
"In an ideal world where there are adequate resources in a community, police officers should not be the first responders to someone who is in a psychiatric crisis," Walker says.
The Mental Health Association of Portland said what the community is missing is robust and welcoming mental health and addiction services.
