Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen announced a new position within the sheriff’s office Thursday, that will help continue to build out the department’s response to mental health crises and ensure the deputies responding are fully equipped to deal with these calls.
Diane Dosal will join the department in the newly created role of Behavioral Health and Compliance Manager.
This addition in the words of Allen reflects the new reality of policing in America, where mental health impacts are beginning to be more understood on a broader level.
“It’s a new day in age across the nation, we’re seeing our mental health is not only affecting our community, but also how it’s affecting our law enforcement professionals and a lot of people also forget how it’s affecting our civilians who are the backbone of any agency that represents our office.”
Dosal brings with her 22 years of law enforcement experience, starting her career with the Gallup Police Department before moving to the Albuquerque Police Department where she worked in a variety of different roles.
Upon her retirement, she was a sergeant in APD’s crisis intervention team and created the first mobile crisis team in Bernalillo County.
Dosal said this role will allow her to use her years of experience to help bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community.
“I have built my resume and I have made it to this point to be the middle person, the liaison between mental health and law enforcement. Officers have come a long way in learning how to speak to individuals in crisis, but we still have some work to do and this is something I want to work on concerning training and education.”
Dosal also said she plans on working with community partners who are in the mental health field as well, joining forces to help the community at large.
Sheriff Allen said he plans on expanding the department’s behavioral health unit during his tenure.