Turning First Contact Into a Turning Point
Across America, many public safety systems have generally operated in a reactive mode, responding to incidents after they occur. In Long Beach, California, city leaders saw an opportunity to take a different, proactive approach.
“We’re focused on intervention and prevention,” said Long Beach City Prosecutor Doug Haubert. “If we can get people into services directly from that first contact with law enforcement, it’s more effective for that individual and better for the community as a whole.”
Long Beach police officers were often the first point of contact for persons experiencing homelessness, mental health crises or substance use disorders. In many cases, these interactions required immediate action, especially when someone was ready to accept help. But without real-time access to information about the individual, or what services were available, officers had limited options in the moment. They relied on memory, phone calls or paper-based resources to try to connect individuals with support.
“We would contact someone, offer services and try to connect them to the right resources,” said Officer Alejandro Cazares of the Long Beach Police Department. “But if we didn’t have an outreach worker with us or immediate access to those resources, we’d have to give them a phone number or an address, or try to call around ourselves.”
Service providers faced a similar challenge. Even when help was available, it was difficult to connect with individuals at the point in time when they were ready to accept it.
“One minute they’re in; one minute they’re out,” said Michael Rubio of the Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (LACADA). “If someone is ready right now, we have to meet them right now.”
Building a Connected Public Safety Solution
To bridge these gaps, the Long Beach City Prosecutor’s Office partnered with Laserfiche to develop GUIDES (Government User Integrated Diversion Enhancement System), a mobile application that connects law enforcement, prosecutors and service providers.
With GUIDES, officers now have immediate access to shelter, mental health and substance use resources directly from their phones. From the field, officers can quickly connect individuals to support through a streamlined process:
- Officers submit a referral in seconds through the GUIDES app while in the field.
- Referrals are routed to the social worker at the City Prosecutor’s Office.
- Individuals are then referred to service providers based on their specific needs.
- Outreach teams from the service providers follow up to connect the individual to their services.
“At its core, GUIDES is a secure data-sharing platform,” said Haubert. “We can now connect people to services as soon as officers encounter them.”
Prior to GUIDES, the Long Beach Police Department was already a long-time user of Laserfiche to improve access to information about court orders. Laserfiche enabled the department to centrally store critical information such as court documents, images and PDFs, apply metadata for organization, and securely retrieve content while meeting regulatory, security and privacy requirements.
“Laserfiche already had a strong presence within the city and the police department,” said Byron Bolton, the city prosecutor’s chief technology officer. “There was a level of trust there, which made it much easier for us to build on that foundation.”
The GUIDES app represents a significant advancement in the city’s approach to public safety. It extends secure information access beyond records management into real-time decision-making in the field. With Laserfiche as the backbone, GUIDES enables officers to access resources, submit referrals and share information across agencies directly from their mobile devices.
Behind the scenes, Laserfiche supports secure data sharing, audit tracking and compliance with criminal justice standards, ensuring that information is accessible, trusted and protected.
“Security is built into every layer of GUIDES,” said Bolton. “The Laserfiche platform allows us to meet CJIS requirements and city cybersecurity standards while still giving officers fast, reliable access to the information they need in the field.”
From Referral to Coordinated Care
Through the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program, which gives officers an alternative way to connect individuals with services, referrals move quickly from first contact to coordinated care.
“Even if it’s overnight, officers can submit a referral, and we can follow up the next morning and make sure the individual gets connected to the service they need,” said Gigi Zanganeh, LEAD program coordinator for the city prosecutor’s office.
For service providers like L.A. CADA, that speed and visibility enable them to respond quickly. In many cases, outreach teams connect with individuals the same day or by the next day, a significant improvement over previous manual processes.
This approach also expands the city’s capacity to serve more individuals by streamlining the process for officers, social workers and service providers to work together.
“Laserfiche allows us to capture referrals, share them across agencies and act on them without delay,” said Bolton. “That level of coordination is what makes this work.”
Real Stories, Real Impact
The impact of GUIDES is best understood through the people it helps:
- After years of repeated interactions, one individual who previously declined assistance was finally connected to substance abuse services through GUIDES. Today, they are substance-free and housed.
- In another case, an individual experiencing homelessness was referred by an officer and connected to services within a day. They were placed into a residential program and they continue to make progress months later.
- For individuals facing complex barriers, coordinated support makes the difference. In one instance, someone was ready to enter treatment but could not leave their pet behind. Through collaboration between city staff, service providers and community partners, a foster solution was arranged, allowing them to begin recovery.
Strengthening Trust and Public Safety
As outcomes improve, so does trust.
“The app definitely helped us build trust with the community because they see the results,” said Cazares.
It’s also changing how residents view law enforcement. “People understand that officers aren’t just there for enforcement,” said Haubert. “They’re there to help people and connect them to the services they need.”
For community partners, the impact is just as meaningful. “When you get everyone at the table — police, prosecutors and providers — all working toward the same goal, it changes everything,” said Rubio.
Together, this alignment is redefining public safety in Long Beach. Officers can act in the moment, service providers can respond quickly, and individuals are connected to support when it matters most.
As the City Prosecutor’s Office continues to expand GUIDES and explore new capabilities, Laserfiche provides the foundation to scale these efforts while maintaining security, visibility and control over information. “Technology like the GUIDES app powered by Laserfiche can save time and money,” said Haubert. “But in Long Beach, we’re using it to save lives.”
