Sonoma County mental health services hard to come by outside the '101 corridor'
For the second time in a little over a month, a Sonoma family that had tried to get help for a troubled son found that the county’s health-services response team was unavailable.
Within days of reaching out for help, both families found that a possibly avoidable tragedy struck – in one case with imprisonment and injury, in the other with death.
The fact that both cases shared a Sonoma Valley location may be a factor in the failure of county health services to respond.
According to multiple sources in the Department of Health Services, the county’s emergency-response Mobile Support Team currently only operates along the Highway 101 corridor, from Petaluma to Windsor.
That places the Sonoma Valley as well as northern and western Sonoma County out of reach of county emergency health support.
RYAN PRITEL
The most recent episode occurred Saturday, May 12 when Randy Pritel called the county health services to request help in getting his 20-year-old son, Ryan Pritel, treatment, or even confinement, so that he would not harm anyone. He was at first told health services would be able to respond – until he said he lived in Sonoma. He was put on hold, then informed county emergency support was not available in the Sonoma Valley.
“She seemed very troubled that they couldn’t send a team,” said Randy Pritel, of the woman he spoke to from county health services. “Her advice was for me to make the determination (on his needs) and try to get him to Santa Rosa or call the police.”
Pritel had experienced his son’s erratic behavior before. “Our family has dedicated ourselves to trying to help Ryan over the years,” he said. In October last year, on a visit to Los Angeles County, Ryan began exhibiting what his father called “red flags” – not eating or sleeping, nervousness, showing signs of delusional thinking. L.A. County Health responded, evaluated Ryan and put him in what they called “5150 custody” for a month.
That number refers to California state law section 5150, which states that when a person “as a result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to others, or to himself or herself, or gravely disabled,” he or she can be taken into custody for a period of up to 72 hours for evaluation and safety.
For Ryan, that period of evaluation led to longer-term treatment. When he was released after a month, he was much better, said his father. He recently had moved out on his own for the first time, sharing a place in the Springs with a friend. He had a steady job at the Jolly Washer five days a week, and he seemed to be improving.
But he returned home the previous Tuesday, May 8, showing the same red-flag behavior he had in Los Angeles. His father finally called county health on Saturday. “When the mental health team in L.A. County came out, there were mental health therapists who made the assessment. That’s what I thought I was going to be able for ask for here,” said Randy Pritel.
Finding support was not available to come to Sonoma, Pritel decided to leave his son alone in hopes he would “come back to himself,” as he had done before.
The next day, May 13, Ryan Pritel took a gun to work at the Jolly Washer car wash on Highway 12. His employers called the Sheriff’s department – and when deputies arrived a shoot-out ensued, culminating in non-fatal injuries to a deputy, Mike Matelli. The younger Pritel was arrested and booked into the Sonoma County jail on charges of attempted murder and carrying a loaded firearm. Bail is set at $1 million.
Ryan Pritel is still incarcerated, and is being represented by the public defender’s office. A court doctor’s report on Pritel’s mental competence is due June 7, and a hearing is scheduled for June 13.
“We are so sorry for what happened to the police officer,” said the older Pritel. “Our entire family is grateful he is recovering at home, and wish him and his family well.”
ROD CAMERON
The first incident took place over a month earlier, when Rod Cameron was staying with his mother, Jude Cameron, at her Sonoma Oaks Mobile Park home (which is entered down the street that adjoins the gas station and car wash where Pritel was arrested). She told the Index-Tribune that her 44-year-old son had been having mental health problems for almost 25 years, ever since experiencing a breakdown while in National Guard training in Panama at age 21. Before that he had not had problems, Mrs. Cameron said – she had worked as a psychiatric social worker in Boston many years earlier – but the onset of mental illness in early adulthood is common.
Over the years he continued to struggle with his mental health, including being admitted several times to psychiatric facilities.
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