Non-criminal complaints to 311 will be handled by the Early Intervention team instead of DPD. Author: Nate Lynn Updated: 4:52 PM MST March 3, 2021
DENVER The City and County of Denver is taking a new approach to handling general complaints about local homeless encampments.
From now on those calls will go to the Early Intervention Team (EIT) instead of the Denver Police Department (DPD), according to Laura Dunwoody, the director of 311 City Services.
Dunwoody said the intention of the change is to get to people experiencing homelessness while the groupings are small.
The EIT will be able to work with unhoused individuals and team them up with resources that can help them get off the streets, Dunwoody said.
The City of Denver receives a few dozen phone calls every day from residents complaining about a homeless encampment or even just a tent near their home, their office or some other area they frequent. Even though these callers are not voicing concerns about criminal activity, such as drug dealing or prostitution, operators on the non-emergency line of the Denver Police Department typically wind up fielding the calls, either because the DPD was contacted directly or because the call was forwarded by 311 or another city agency. What we came to find out was that [Denver Police Department officers] were at a loss about what to do with the ones where a crime wasn t happening in that area, says Laura Dunwoody, director of 311 City Services. After receiving such a call, a Denver police commander would send out a patrol car to do an assessment of the encampment that was the subject of the complaint before deciding what, if anything, could be done.