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Fredonia Police Chief David Price informed the Fredonia Board of Trustees this week his department is getting swamped by calls dealing with mentally ill people.
"As a department we've been very busy. We're struggling with a lot of mental health calls," Price said. "There are a couple injured police officers dealing with those calls, but we're making it."
"How are the resources from the county for mental health calls?" asked Trustee Nicole Siracuse.
"We're dealing with it as a department," Price responded. "The calls we've dealt with have happened after business hours. They're violent people. We had one guy who actually came to the window and wanted us to arrest him. There's a lot more to it.
"Where I struggle is, you know, I have two cops on the road and we have to call in two cops to take them to Jamestown," he went on. "There's a huge expense to it and risk. I'm just making you aware, because it's still an area of strong concern that we're dealing with."
"Is that something that's increased exponentially recently?" asked Mayor Douglas Essek.
Price responded, "Since COVID with all the law changes, and the closure of prisons and releasing people and not locking them up, and mental health facilities closing, they're left to our..."
"They're left to medicate themselves and take care of themselves and it's not happening," Essek said.
"And they're incapable," Price continued. "It's not just our community, but when (Fredonia's) force is the size it is, it poses problems with finding personnel to transport and control the matters. But there's a cost and that's why I'm letting you know."