DENVER (KMOX) - St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones and Congresswoman Cori Bush toured public safety and social service locations in Denver Thursday, looking how that city's Support Team Assistance Response (STAR) program works. Colorado's capital city has been sending social service workers to certain calls that previously were responded to by police.
Mayor Jones campaigned on a promise to do likewise in St. Louis, with strong support from Rep. Bush.
The two also met with Denver Mayor Michael Hancock about the program.
"We need to put St. Louis back on the map, and learning from other cities is part of how we do that." said Mayor Jones following the meeting.
"STAR helps reimagine public safety and help police focus on their most important job: solving violent crime." Rep. Bush added, "Public safety is public health - and Denver is leading the way in prioritizing care over criminalization."
In the past year of the program, STAR has answered 1,381 calls with none resulting in a request for police backup. Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen told local media earlier this year the program was working as promised.
None of the people they responded to in the first six months were arrested.
The relatively small number of responses is because of the limited resources committed to what's now just a pilot program. The Chief said adding another $3-million to the budget could provide more workers and vans which comprise the response teams. In all, 2.8% of 911 calls qualified for the STAR response.
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