WTF is the 9th Circuit Thinking? Scott v. Smith Just Broke Policing on the West Coast

Well, folks, the 9th Circuit just dropped another bombshell. In Scott v. Smith, they basically ruled that a fatal use of force during a mental health response was unjustified and then threw in a little extra: Maybe cops shouldn’t even be responding to these calls at all.

And guess what? Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said, fine, we won’t.

He announced that his deputies will no longer respond to non-criminal mental health calls. And you know what? I don’t blame him. I wouldn’t send my officers either.

Here’s the reality check: The system is f’n broken.

For years, law enforcement has been stuck plugging holes in a sinking ship. We’re not mental health professionals, yet we’re expected to respond to every crisis because no one else will. And then, when things go sideways—because they will—the courts swoop in, pick apart every frame of body cam footage, and rewrite history from the comfort of their chambers.

It’s easy to be a Monday morning quarterback when you’ve never had to wrestle someone high on meth and swinging a knife. It’s real simple to say “use de-escalation” when you’ve never had an unstable person charge at you. And now, thanks to this ruling, officers are going to hesitate when they shouldn’t—or worse, they’re just not going to show up at all.

Who’s coming when you call 911 now?

I’ll wait.

Because if cops aren’t coming, and mental health professionals sure as hell aren’t trained or willing to take on violent individuals, who’s handling the next psychotic break? Your social worker with a clipboard? The city council that defunded the police but never built an actual alternative?

This ruling doesn’t just make policing harder—it makes communities more dangerous. Law enforcement has been forced into these situations for decades. Now, the courts are pulling the rug out, leaving officers and the public with a giant question mark.

And let’s be real: If a social worker gets killed because they were sent into a volatile situation with no backup, the same people who just ruled on this case will pretend they never saw it coming.

This is where we are.

We’re at a point where cops are so demonized that departments are saying, “We’re out. You figure it out.” And I don’t blame them. I would have done the same damn thing.

The 9th Circuit just played a dangerous game with public safety. And it’s only a matter of time before the consequences hit home.

Brace yourselves, because the fallout is coming.

Oh, and you already know our asses will be covering this on The Fuzz Buzz Podcast. Follow along on Rumble, YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout—because this mess isn’t going anywhere, and neither are we.

Source: Joanna Putman, Police1.com