GRAEAGLE, Calif. _ Before George Quinn wrapped a chain around the rafters of his wood shop and hanged himself in June, he texted his big sister goodbye.
"This is the hardest part," wrote the reclusive 63-year-old master carpenter, who lived alone with his elderly cat, Sam, in this Northern California mountain town. "Sorry for everything. You should call the Plumas Co sheriff and have them go to the garage."
Carol Quinn dialed law enforcement from her home near Reno, more than an hour away, desperate for authorities to save her brother's life.
The answer she received was startling: Deputies were no longer responding to calls like hers, because the situation could end as a "suicide by cop."
"Go to the garage" could hint at an ambush, a deputy told her. She would have to try to reach her brother on her own.
"We were flabbergasted," Carol said. "I think almost anyone assumes when you call the sheriff's office for help that you're going to get some help. And they refused to go."
Plumas County is not the only jurisdiction in California that is rethinking how it responds to suicide calls. Some small and midsize law enforcement agencies across the state have stopped responding to certain calls because of the potential dangers, both to officers and the person attempting to end his or her life. They also present a financial liability from lawsuits _ especially if the situation turns violent.
Other agencies, including the police departments of Los Angeles and San Francisco and the L.A. County sheriff, use "disengagement" strategies that allow them to leave calls without confronting someone in crisis. These tactics are used most often when the person is alone and does not present a threat to anyone else, and no crime is being committed.
"In too many instances, we show up and further aggravate a crisis situation," Plumas County Sheriff-Coroner Greg Hagwood said. "And then, in the end, bad things happen."
Some fear that, as police stand down, civilians will be left to handle difficult and potentially dangerous situations alone. But Hagwood and others in law enforcement say the profession must examine its legal and moral obligations in an era when use of force is under intense scrutiny and there is increased pressure to curtail deadly police incidents.
A bill currently on Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk would toughen the state's rules governing when officers can use lethal force. It mimics civil case law, which, for years, has allowed examinations of officers' behavior leading up to fatal encounters. For many law enforcement officers, evolving expectations combined with rising numbers of mental health calls mean changing, and potentially limiting, what they do.
"We can't always be everything to everyone all the time," Hagwood said.
