This is a liberal proposal that has long been in demand on the left but has rarely gotten much further than the drawing board. Now, however, Cambridge, Massachusetts is getting ready to pull the trigger on it. Or, more correctly, not pull the trigger. Democrats there have been working to "reimagine the police" ever since the Summer of Love and now they have established the Community Assistance Response and Engagement Team (CARE). This group of unarmed social workers goes out to assist people experiencing mental or emotional difficulties. But soon they will assume a new role. They will be sent out on some 911 calls to resolve situations involving people in distress rather than sending armed officers. What could possibly go wrong? (Boston Globe)

It took less than a minute for the crew of five social workers in matching mint-green T-shirts to find people who could use some help.

Right outside the door to their Central Square headquarters last month, they found a woman sitting on the ground with a few small bags, taking a rest in the 80-plus-degree heat, and gave her water and snacks. A few steps down Mass. Ave., they chatted with a homeless man who wanted assistance getting an ID.

Later, they consoled a woman who walked up to them in tears, asking if someone could pray with her. They obliged.

To be clear, the examples offered of what CARE has been doing thus far sound great and I take no issue with that. Bringing water to people stuck out in the heat, assisting the homeless with basic services, or praying with grieving people are things that should be right up their alley. It's also true that some 911 calls can involve people experiencing mental or emotional distress who have spiraled out of control. Some of those situations might also benefit from the intervention of a trained social worker.

With all of that said, however, answering 911 calls is a very different matter. Plenty of situations can arise where people experiencing mental instability can cause a disturbance, but by the time someone makes the decision to dial 911, things have generally reached a crisis point. After all, when you call 911, the operator will almost always initially ask you "What is your emergency?" That's why it's the emergency helpline.

Police receive special training to deal with all manner of emergencies. And contrary to liberal dogma, they don't show up at the scene with guns blazing. They will always try to talk people down off the ledge (figuratively) if possible before resorting to potentially deadly force. Unfortunately, there are some situations, particularly involving deranged individuals, where force may wind up being the only viable option to keep the community safe.

So what do they expect these unarmed CARE workers to do if they respond to one of those calls and everything goes south? Particularly if the maniac they are dealing with produces a weapon, a clipboard isn't going to be of much use. If one of these CARE workers winds up dead or seriously injured at the hands of some mentally disturbed maniac, the police are still going to have to be sent in to clean up the situation anyway. 

Perhaps a much better compromise might be available if Cambridge has the money to splash around on a program like this. They could have CARE workers go out on patrol with the police. If they take a call that looks like it might involve a mentally disturbed individual and the situation looks safe enough, they could be sent in first to see if they can handle it. If the situation looks like it's already reached the stage of violence, they could wait in the squad car while the cops take care of it. But sending teams of them out into the wild without any police backup just sounds like a recipe for disaster.