The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote a follow-up article on the investigation of Milwaukee Police action involving a tragic loss of life stemming from the issues of mental health and public safety. In February, a 24-year-old man was killed by police, and our community searches for answers. Attorney Craig Mastantuono was once again contacted the put these issues into perspective for the public by drawing upon his more than 30 years of experience as a criminal defense attorney whose practice regularly involves complex mental health challenges. You can read the full follow-up article below, or on the Journal Sentinel's website; the first Journal Sentinel article on this issue is available here.

A Milwaukee police officer was shot, a man was killed. Could it have been prevented?

David Clarey, Natalie Eilbert, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

As he sat behind the wheel of his car in a parking lot on Milwaukee's northwest side, Isaiah Stott appeared calm as he spoke with an officer Feb. 11. But he said he needed help.

The officer and Stott discussed their faith and the crisis of community the man was feeling.

“God has been speaking to me,” Stott tells the officer. "Evil in the world is mounting. It's chaos."

The next day, in an exchange of gunfire on Wisconsin Avenue, Stott was killed after he shot and injured a police officer.

The nearly 10-minute interaction was captured on police body cam footage and reviewed by the Journal Sentinel. It appeared to follow Milwaukee Police Department policy in dealing with someone in mental distress, including calling a Crisis Assessment Response Team.

The footage offers a glimpse into the thousands of interactions like these that happen every year in Milwaukee and around the state and how authorities evaluate appropriate responses to those in crisis. But the footage of the interaction also raises broader questions about the adequacy of the state's crisis protocols and how law enforcement should respond.

“There’s a famous saying throughout many centuries of psychiatrists, ‘They will die with their rights,’” said Mary Kay Battaglia, executive director of NAMI Wisconsin, which stands for National Alliance on Mental Illness. “So, the question becomes, is it the system that failed him because there weren’t adequate services available or was it that he couldn’t acknowledge he had a problem?”

'We're just here to help'

This first incident with police occurred after Stott attempted to enter a church to clear it of “evil” and security told police he threatened them.

"We're just here to help," the police officer said to the former Marine Corps veteran, according to the body cam footage. "These people are concerned you're in a mental health crisis."

The incident, which took place in the parking lot for Evolve Church in northwest Milwaukee, did not result in what’s known as a Chapter 51 hold, or an involuntary mental health hold. That has strict legal requirements and, among other factors, requires someone to be deemed a threat to others or themselves.

"A crisis assessment was conducted … however, the individual did not meet the criteria for a Chapter 51. A firearm was not located and (he) was released," Milwaukee police previously said in a statement regarding the incident.

In the end, Stott left the area without incident and police told those who called out of concern for their safety — including one person saying Stott asked him if he was ready to die — that he had received resources from a mental health professional.

The footage of police interactions with Stott does not show discussions with Stott and a Crisis Assessment Response Team, a collaboration between police and Milwaukee County's Behavioral Division that responds to situations involving mental health crisis. The CART team includes a police officer and a licensed clinician.

Footage only shows the initial discussions that took place with the officers who first responded to the call.

At various points in the conversation, Stott denies he has a weapon, has threatened anyone, or that he is having a mental health crisis.

"Well, do you think you need any kind of mental health help?" the officer asks Stott.

"Not mental," he responds.

"What kind of help?" the officers asks him and Stott tells him "community support." The two then go on to discuss the officers' kids' names, the crisis Stott is feeling and some of the reasons police were called to speak with him. When asked what his plan was moving forward, Stott tells the officer he is going to "ask for guidance."

Soon after, police say a CART team could come to speak to him and Stott requests they come. Video shows someone introduce herself to Stott as a social worker, before the video ends. That greeting occurred at about 2:45 p.m. and they are later seen saying goodbye to Stott at about 2:58 p.m.

Officers briefly discuss the team’s interactions with church staff. They say Stott was “not in the right state of mind,” but the CART team had assisted him and recommended they call police if he returns.

“They got him some resources and were able to get him some help,” a police officer said. “I think he’s going through a mental health crisis.”

Police handled the situation well, said Craig Mastantuono, a Milwaukee criminal defense attorney who reviewed the body cam footage. He described Stott as challenging and evasive for the officer, but ultimately calm and didn't explicitly indicate a need for intervention.

The defense attorney said it seems credible the officers did not advocate for a hold in that interaction, but the next logical question is what the CART team interaction looked like.

"This is the type of patience and inquisitive approach that a community would like its officers to act with," he said. "They seemed they wanted to get to the bottom of what happened and whether Mr. Stott needed help."

Theron Rogers, the head of security at Evolve Church, previously told the Journal Sentinel he didn't believe his interaction with Stott would be enough to justify an involuntary hold, but the interaction still concerned him. Like police, he also described Stott as dealing with mental health issues

Even before these incidents, Stott had been struggling with mental health, his father told the Journal Sentinel previously. And his time in the Marine Corps ended early, with the military branch saying in an email it was "indicative that the character of his service was incongruent with Marine Corps' expectations and standards." Stott had received medals during his tenure with the Marines and he had no criminal record in Wisconsin.

There appeared to be other signs something was amiss with him.

Stott last saw his parents the evening before his death. His father said he looked like he "hadn't slept in days" and Stott's mom was trying to get him to eat. He said Stott would tell him and others that he was having a "religious transformation" but he was becoming increasingly delusional, according to the father.

Stott also posted rambling videos to his Facebook page in the days before the incident, saying how his name would soon be involved in "dumb" actions and "don't be surprised."

Mental health issues collide with policing

Responding to people in crisis is complicated, experts told the Journal Sentinel.

But it happens a lot and is increasing. Since 2019, Milwaukee's police have responded to between about 7,000 and 8,000 calls related to mental health issues, according to data presented at a city meeting in October. In that meeting, police said about 21% of the calls so far that year resulted in involuntary holds.

Even if systems of care could contain every individual experiencing a crisis, there’s still the problem of whether someone is willing to acknowledge they’re struggling, said Battaglia, from NAMI Wisconsin. Battaglia did not review the body cam footage of the police interaction with Stott.

Sometimes, that unwillingness stems from stigmas associated with mental illness, but some individuals experiencing psychosis exhibit a neurological condition known as anosognosia, which makes it hard for them to recognize symptoms of mental illness.

That complicates the types of interventions law enforcement and other agencies can offer, Battaglia said. If people aren’t willing to accept help, it’s their right to refuse.

But other factors can play a critical role in crisis intervention. Under Chapter 51 in state statute, there must be a “substantial probability” that someone will commit of physical harm or impairment on themselves or others. A “specific recent overt act or attempt or threat” observed by an officer could also trigger a Chapter 51.

These definitions, Battaglia said, are narrowly defined and make it difficult to justify involuntary services. 

“Does that mean that someone gets to die in the freezing cold because they're not imminently dangerous to themselves or others?” Battaglia said. “At what point as a society do we determine that this person deserves our help?”

The defense attorney Mastantuono agreed with Battaglia. He said situations like Stott's raise ethical questions of how much pressure the CART team or others who work in mental health can put on someone to do something they don't want to do.

"I’m not a community mental health advocate, but that’s the question that remains … do we strongly encourage them to make a decision that is in their best interest?" he said.

Efforts have been done to revise some of the criteria that trigger a Chapter 51, which could especially serve people who aren’t able to acknowledge their conditions. The statute was even updated to include a criterion for this specific group, which states “the subject is unable to understand or apply an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of treatment to his or her mental illness.”

That criterion is woefully underutilized, Battaglia said.

The underuse of this standard means law enforcement are stuck in the vicious cycle of recidivism, Battaglia said. 

“If they're walking around saying things that are not logical, if they have disturbing behavior that does not seem normal to other people, none of those things is a criminal act,” Battaglia said. “There's nothing criminal about what he was doing. Law enforcement are stuck and the family is very much stuck.”

Placing someone in an involuntary mental health hold is dictated by state law.

The statute has four stipulations for taking someone into custody, each requiring "substantial probability" they will occur, and requires at least one is met: harm or threats of it to oneself; harm to others or threats of it; physical impairment due to impaired judgment; and behavior that shows the person may not be able to satisfy their basic needs.

Milwaukee police policy dictates officers follow state law in their judgment of placing people in holds. The policy is not a step-by-step guide for how these interactions should be handled, but outlines options, like calling a CART team.

It also provides reason for why one wouldn't be used.

“To protect personal liberties, no person who can be treated adequately outside of a hospital institution or other inpatient facility may be involuntarily treated in such a facility," the policy reads. "If a subject does not appear to be acutely mentally ill and exhibits an ability and willingness to cooperate with voluntary treatment, a 'substantial probability of physical harm' may not exist and an emergency detention may not be necessary.”