Mayor suspends contract with psychology firm

Baltimore's mayor is suspending the city's contract with a Lutherville psychology firm accused of improperly evaluating police recruits for mental health.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is calling into question whether officers have been adequately screened for mental health in order to do their jobs properly.

The suspension comes as the company, Psychology Consultants Associated, is named in a wrongful death lawsuit.

Licensed psychologist Dr. LaKeita Carter said news of a psychology firm allegedly rushing through psychological evaluations of aspiring police officers is concerning. Carter said she has treated first responders, including some city and state police officers, for mental stability.

"First responders really need to be trained to set aside those things, so that they can help others in their time of need, so if there is somebody who is compromised from a mental health or an emotional standpoint, we don't want to send them out into the field. We want them to get treatment," Carter said.

According to documents from the state attorney general's office, Psychology Consultants Associated, came under fire after the company solicited a local psychologist to help conduct 15-minute assessments on recruits instead of the required hour-long sessions.

"These are very concerning allegations I take seriously. That has been my track record. When serious allegations have been brought, particularly with people that work for the city, I take swift action," Rawlings-Blake said Thursday.

The mayor said Friday that the city is suspending referrals of employees, police officers or their family members to PCA until the investigation is complete.

Both PCA and its president, Kenneth Sachs, are named in a wrongful death lawsuit. Baltimore police Officer Angeline Todman, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, killed herself with her service weapon.

In the lawsuit, Todman's family alleges PCA is partly responsible for her death after Sachs reportedly deemed her fit to return to active duty five days following two involuntary hospitalizations.

Carter said it's important for agencies to know when to pull someone back from duty.

"Obviously things can happen that tip scales. An evaluation that's done in 2014 may come back as someone being fit for duty, and then six months later, a year later, that same person might not be fit for duty, so who is responsible for identifying when that person needs to go back or be pulled back is important," Carter said.

The mayor's office released a statement Friday that follows in its entirety:

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced Baltimore City will immediately suspend referring any additional employees, police officers or their family members to Psychology Consultants Associated P.A. (PCA), pending the outcome of ongoing investigations from the city’s law department and office of the inspector general.

Services will now be provided through Atlantic OccuPsych in Towson, Maryland. Atlantic OccuPsych is operated by principal psychologist Dr. Steve Curran.

Atlantic OccuPsych will provide a broad range of services, including pre-hire mental examinations, follow-up and fitness for reassignment examinations, as well as continued fitness for duty exams. Employees who wish to continue existing services under PCA during the suspension period may do so, however PCA will not receive new clients from the city or the police department at this time.

“Mayor Rawlings-Blake has decided to indefinitely suspend services performed by Psychology Consultants Associated P.A. pending the outcome of ongoing investigations,” said Kevin Harris, spokesman for the Mayor’s Office. “Through ongoing litigation, additional information has come to the mayor’s attention which makes it necessary to temporarily suspend our contract with PCA until further notice. Because this matter remains an open investigation, we cannot comment further, however the mayor’s actions today should not be interpreted as any determination of liability on behalf of PCA. The mayor will make a final determination on the status of PCA’s contract at the conclusion of the open investigations to determine if PCA has satisfactorily met the terms of their contract with the city."

Psychological operations and assessments of city employees and police officers will not be impacted in anyway due to the suspension of services from PCA.

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