Holistic Assistance Response Team Continues To Enhance Public Safety In Harris County As Teams Expand Reach
The county’s HART unit dispatches trained “healthcare experts, crisis intervention specialists, and case managers who de-escalate conflict and stabilize people in the throes of an acute mental health crisis” to mental health and behavioral health calls for service, as well as to calls related to homelessness and substance use disorders in the community.
The team helps people “get to a safe space” and connects them to ongoing support, with case managers following up after the crisis. As HCSO Assistant Chief Mike Lee explained to the Houston Chronicle in HART’s first year, the team had already “freed up [hundreds of] hours of law enforcement time to respond to other calls.” Commissioner Ellis summed it up: “We are sending the right experts to solve the right problems.” HART recently updated the county with its progress:
- Growing Calls For Service:Since launch, HART has now responded to 24,480 calls countywide, including 8,070 calls in the past 12 months—with 800 more calls for service, just last month. The vast majority of 911-dispatched HART calls are handled by HART teams alone, underscoring the program’s ability to safely and effectively resolve calls, freeing up resources for law enforcement to focus on solving serious crimes.
- Dedicated HART Phone Line Has Launched:713-274-HART is now live, offering a direct, bilingual connection to HART case managers during business hours.
- Expanded Training: HART responders will receive specialized domestic-violence training through the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council to strengthen safety, legal compliance, and survivor support.
- Growing Partnerships: The HART unit met with Baytown Fire/EMS and Baytown Police to explore service expansion, supported Houston Food Bank emergency distributions during SNAP disruptions, and is coordinating next steps with Harris County Veterans Services.
- Reach Expanding: HART is on track to have 21 field-ready teams by the end of Q1 2026 and reach full capacity of 23 teams by the end of Q2.
What Commissioner Ellis Says: “When it's a robbery in progress, or a shooting, then obviously we need to send an armed sheriff’s deputy. But if we are talking about a person sleeping on a sidewalk, or a teenager who is suicidal and swallowed pills, then we need a behavioral health expert to respond. That’s the kind of crucial work that HART’s crisis intervention specialists do everyday, and this is what it looks like to fully fund public safety in Harris County—we’ve got law enforcement, we’ve got mobile crisis response, and we’ve got community violence intervention. We are sending the right experts to solve the right problems.”