Office of Alternative and Community Responses (OACR)
Tiffany Wilson, Director
The Office of Alternative and Community Responses (OACR) is coordinating the Department of Law and Public Safety’s efforts to address how the Department and New Jersey’s law enforcement agencies respond to the country’s continued mental health and addiction crises. Law enforcement is often the first in the community to see the impact of these crises and the first to be asked to address them, often without the appropriate resources to do so. Traditional law enforcement responses and tools such as arrest, prosecution, and incarceration have proven inadequate in addressing the complexities of substance use disorder and mental health emergencies, often burdening frontline police officers and failing to provide effective solutions for the individual or the community impacted. This lack of success has underscored the need for alternative and coordinated strategies and solutions.
Operating within the Department of Law and Public Safety, OACR supports, coordinates, and creates strategies and collaborations aimed at enhancing public health and safety outcomes in situations where public health and public safety intersect. OACR is working to create a safer and healthier New Jersey for all by incorporating mental and behavioral health interventions, implementing innovative approaches, collaborating with communities, and promoting the well-being of law enforcement officers.
DIRECTIVE 2024-01
AG Directive 2024-01 | March 13, 2024
Directive Creating the Office of Alternative and Community Responses
PROGRAMS
PRESS RELEASES
Acting AG Bruck Announces Initiative That Pairs A Mental Health Professional With a Law Enforcement Officer To Respond Together To Behavioral Health Crises
“ARRIVE Together” Initiative, First of Its Kind In New Jersey, Will Begin As A Pilot Program Based Out Of New Jersey State Police’s Cumberland County StationsFor Immediate Release: November 30, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney...
State Grand Jury Declines to Charge Officers Involved in Fatal Police Encounter With Two Armed Assailants Who Killed Jersey City Detective Joseph Seals and Then Killed Three Civilians in JC Kosher Supermarket on December 10, 2019
For Immediate Release: November 17, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney GeneralOffice of Public Integrity and Accountability- Thomas J. Eicher, Executive DirectorFor Further Information: Media Inquiries-Peter...
AG’s Office Investigating Fatal Police Shooting in Long Branch
***UPDATED INFORMATION INCLUDING IDENTITY OF DECEDENT AND OFFICERS***For Immediate Release: November 10, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney GeneralOffice of Public Integrity and Accountability- Thomas J. Eicher, Executive DirectorFor...
AG’s Office Investigating Fatal Police Shooting in Long Branch
For Immediate Release: November 6, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney GeneralOffice of Public Integrity and Accountability- Thomas J. Eicher, Executive DirectorFor Further Information: Media Inquiries-Steven...
New Jersey Law Enforcement Leaders Unveil Memorial Honoring Officers Who Died During COVID-19 Pandemic
For Immediate Release: October 13, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney General For Further Information: Media Inquiries-Steven BarnesOAGpress@njoag.gov TRENTON – New Jersey’s law enforcement leaders gathered today at the Richard J....
AG’s Office Releases 911 Call and Video from Body Worn Camera Related to Fatal Police-Involved Shooting in Mantua on September 14
For Immediate Release: October 6, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Andrew J. Bruck, Acting Attorney GeneralOffice of Public Integrity and Accountability- Thomas J. Eicher, Executive Director For Further Information: Media Inquiries-Peter AseltineOAGpress@njoag.gov...
Fourteen Defendants Indicted In Connection With Shooting Of New Jersey State Trooper Last Year In Pittsgrove
For Immediate Release: July 12, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney GeneralOffice of Public Integrity and Accountability- Thomas J. Eicher, DirectorFor Further Information: Media Inquiries-Peter Aseltine609-292-4791Citizen...
AG Grewal Announces Permanent Revocation of Passaic County Surgeon’s License for Alleged Indiscriminate Prescribing of CDS
For Immediate Release: June 14, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney GeneralNJ CARES- Sharon M. Joyce, DirectorDivision of Consumer Affairs- Kaitlin A. Caruso, Acting DirectorDivision of Law- Michelle Miller, Director For Further...
AG Grewal: State Board of Medical Examiners Permanently Suspends License of Middlesex County Physician Who Indiscriminately Prescribed Opioids
For Immediate Release: June 1, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney GeneralNJ CARES- Sharon M. Joyce, DirectorDivision of Consumer Affairs- Kaitlin A. Caruso, Acting DirectorDivision of Law- Michelle Miller, DirectorFor Further Information:...
AG Grewal Announces Grants to Establish “Opioid Response Teams” in Five Cities Throughout New Jersey
Teams to Provide 24/7 Crisis Intervention for Individuals Suffering from Opioid Addiction.For Immediate Release: June 1, 2021 Office of The Attorney General- Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney GeneralDivision of Consumer Affairs- Paul R. Rodríguez, Acting DirectorDivision of...