East Cascade SWAT adds Chelan County Deputy to Crisis Negotiation Team

CHELAN COUNTY — The East Cascade SWAT unit, which saw duty as recently as last month, has added a member to their Crisis Negotiation Team, an integral part of the unit.

The SWAT team is comprised of members from 4 different law enforcement agencies: The Sheriff’s Offices of Chelan and Douglas Counties, and the Police Departments of both Wenatchee and East Wenatchee.

According to a press release from Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison, testing was recently conducted from among these agencies to add an additional member to the elite team. After the conclusion of the testing, which included a supervisor’s recommendation, oral testimony before a board, and several specialized scenarios designed to gauge negotiation skills in high-stress situations, the panel selected Deputy Zach Brunner from the CCSO.

Deputy Brunner has long been involved in deescalation practices in law enforcement. In 2021, the CCSO announced the development of their Behavioral Health Unit (BHU) in conjunction with Catholic Charities, which Brunner led with his counterpart Ana Gonzalez, a licensed Designated Crisis Responder on the Catholic Charities Diversion team.

Together, they tackled what law enforcement considers one of the most critical aspects of crisis intervention, mental health. The BHU was very successful at diverting people from jail if it was found to be unnecessary, and instead getting them the help they needed.

The selection of Deputy Brunner for the East Cascade SWAT team will add essential skills to a unit that is deployed only in times of the highest need.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media