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By Amani Chiari
Wellness checks—intended as protective, even life-saving measures—have, for many Black women, become invasive, traumatizing, or even fatal. Under the guise of concern, these interventions often involve police officers who are unequipped to respond to mental health crises or who operate on implicit bias. When law enforcement arrives with assumptions of danger, especially in Black and poor communities, the outcome can be violence or death—not safety.
When Safety Becomes Surveillance
On August 20, 2024, Minnesota police failed to respond to an animal control request during an ongoing health crisis for a tenant that was being sexually harassed by the rental company. Had police arrived to provide a police report as they said, the victim, who was being monitored by the predator beneath her window during the call—would have explained that the animal control issue was part of ongoing sexual harassments by the live-in property manager.
Yet, on December 13, 2024, without any crime reported—and with an affidavit in the hands of the city’s attorney, City Hall, and a face-to-face conversation with the city housing inspector stating that the live-in property manager was sexually harassing the tenant and that repairs were not being made since the tenant rejected a chilling sexual advance in the rental office for months—they were ready to enter a Black woman’s home at the request of the very property manager identified months before as the sexual harasser.
For white men, even criminals, that she had no relationship with—men like the property’s absentee owner, Don Klyberg, a registered slumlord with the City of Minneapolis, and Rick Newmann, his property manager and an identified sexual predator stalking the woman for several months—police were caught in the act, with legs and arms inside the unit, trying to remove the unit’s chain lock from the inside.
When asked what was going on, they cited that an unidentified friend “hadn’t seen or heard from her in a while.” As he removed his foot and arm from inside the unit, the tenant removed the barricades kept in front of the door for months, in case of such an event as this which seemed imminent. Swinging the door open, Rick Newmann's master key to the apartment unit swung back and forth in deadbolt. They knew who had sent this attack, she knew who had sent this attack but they would name him or admit that he was there in the hallway with them—they were protecting him knowing all she had reported months ago. They were willing to assist him in the torment.
The reality?
All her curtains had been open for days.
Food was being cooked.
Music and television were on.
This wasn’t concern. It was surveillance, humiliation, intimidation by a sexual predator that had been inching his intention of forced entry into that unit, for dominance and male privilege, closer and closer to the tenants front door for months, while systems knew and failed. Maybe, it might have been death had the tenant not awoke prior to the three men fully entering her home.
The apartment manager, Rick Newmann—present and uncontacted by police— was seen reportedly fleeing down the steps when the tenant came to the door. And this wasn't the first time she had felt her home was being invaded under the pretense of wellness when it was actually systematic crime.
Cases That Reveal the Deadly Pattern
This story isn’t isolated. It belongs to a broader, documented pattern of deadly wellness checks, particularly when Black women are involved.
Atatiana Jefferson (Fort Worth, 2019)
Police responded to what was initially reported as a “wellness check” (later identified as an "open structure" call). Without announcing themselves, an officer shot Jefferson through a window while she was inside her home playing video games with her young nephew. Experts warn that such misclassification escalates situations, especially under assumptions of danger.
Sonya Massey (Illinois, 2024)
A Black woman allegedly living with schizophrenia, Massey reached out to the police for protection after hearing a sound outside her home—but was tragically killed during the intervention. Her case underscores how Black women with mental health conditions face compounded risks when law enforcement is involved.
Michelle Cusseaux (Arizona, 2014)
During a welfare check, police shot and killed Cusseaux amid a mental health crisis, highlighting the inadequacy of police training and protocols for such situations.
Breonna Taylor (Kentucky, 2020)
Though not a wellness check, Taylor was forcibly entered by police using a "no-knock" warrant. Her death during the raid illuminates the widespread risk posed to Black women—even in their own homes.
Chantel Moore (Canada, 2020)
An Indigenous woman fatally shot during a wellness check by Canadian police—her death sparked national outrage and demands for systemic reform.
Tyisha Miller (California, 1998)
Miller was found unconscious in her vehicle, prompting family to request a wellness check. Police shot her despite no immediate threat, revealing a longstanding pattern of deadly outcomes even in medical-related calls.
The Cost of Misclassification
When officers respond with weapons instead of wellness, marginalized lives are put at risk. Often, the term “wellness check” is used to mask what is in fact a criminal enforcement action—justified by vague mental health claims or “community concerns.” Black women, especially those with any medical or psychiatric history, are routinely disbelieved or deemed unstable.
Many officers lack training in de-escalation and trauma-informed response. According to public health experts, police involvement in wellness checks dramatically raises the likelihood of a fatal encounter—particularly for Black and disabled individuals.
Related: Minnesota Senator Nicole Mitchell Convicted for Burglary, Claims She Was Performing "Welfare Check" On The Victim
Community Voices Demand Change
Online and grassroots voices have long called attention to this violence:
“Police shouldn’t be performing wellness checks… It should be handled by other people depending on the situation. Why is there no procedure to make a call first?”
— Reddit user, r/BlackLivesMatter
“Wellness checks are highly problematic. People getting evicted because some harpy keeps on ‘getting worried’ and sending the cops to them for no damn reason.”
— Reddit user, r/Antipsychiatry
The call is clear: Stop sending police to care for people. Send care.
#SayHerName and the Fight for Justice
The #SayHerName campaign brings visibility to Black women harmed or killed by state violence. It demands we center their stories—not just as victims, but as human beings whose dignity and safety deserve full protection, not erasure.
Behind every name is a home invaded, a voice silenced, a future stolen. Behind every “wellness check” gone wrong is a system choosing control over compassion.
Rethinking Safety
True safety doesn't come through forced entry, handcuffs, or guns. It comes through trust, autonomy, and care-centered response. Until wellness checks are reimagined—and the voices of Black women taken seriously—we will continue to mourn lives lost not in war, but in the privacy of their own homes.
APA-Style References
American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Say Her Name. Wikipedia. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SayHerName
Bever, L. (2019, October 14). Fort Worth police officer charged with murder in Atatiana Jefferson shooting. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/oct/14/fort-worth-police-shooting-atatiana-jefferson-killed
CNN Staff. (2019, October 19). Why 'wellness checks' by police are resulting in fatalities. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/19/us/wellness-check-police-shootings-trnd/index.html
Essence Editors. (2024, August 25). Remembering Sonya Massey: We must prioritize Black women’s wellness. Essence. https://www.essence.com/op-ed/remembering-sonya-massey-we-must-prioritize-black-womens-wellness/
Freeman, H. (2024, July 27). Sonya Massey’s death underscores disproportionate police violence against Black and disabled people. Salon. https://www.salon.com/2024/07/27/sonya-massey-underscores-disproportionate-police-violence-against-black-and-disabled-people/
PBS NewsHour. (2020, September 23). What Breonna Taylor’s killing says about police treatment of Black women. PBS. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/what-breonna-taylors-killing-says-about-police-treatment-of-black-women
Wikipedia contributors. (2024). Tyisha Miller. Wikipedia. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyisha_Miller
Wikipedia contributors. (2024). Killing of Chantel Moore. Wikipedia. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Chantel_Moore
National Library of Medicine. (2022). Police violence as a public health issue. PMC. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9173663/
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