LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — As detectives both in New York and here in Las Vegas work to uncover more details about Shane Tamura’s past, details of his struggles with mental health are being revealed.
Monday evening, NYPD officials revealed Tamura’s documented mental health history. “Our partners in Las Vegas made us aware of a mental health history. According to our law enforcement partners in Las Vegas, Mr. Tamura has a documented mental health history,” said New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
Further investigations have also revealed that Tamura was placed in at least two mental health crisis holds over two years while in Nevada.
According to reports, those two mental health crises date back to 2022 and another in 2024.
Investigators have not yet revealed what Mental health struggles Tamura may have been dealing with; however, the State of Nevada Division of Public Health and Behavioral Health experts detail what a mental health crisis could look like.
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“When someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, they are not thinking clearly. A mental health crisis can happen to anyone, and when it does, it can be scary and confusing for the person experiencing the crisis, for the person’s loved ones, and for professionals who don’t work with mental health crises on a day-to-day basis,” Division Director for the Washoe County Human Services Agnecy, Cara Paoli, in a Nevada Department of Human Services vidoe back in 2022.
In that Nevada Adult Crisis Hold Explanation video, Paoli says a mental health crisis hold can last up to 72 hours and can be issued by psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and even law enforcement officers when they believe someone may be a danger to themselves or others.
“A few examples are a person experiencing depression who tried to end their life, a person having hallucinations who tried to kill someone because they thought the person was a demon, or a person experiencing severe paranoia,” Paoli said.
Paoli also says some people may experience a mental health crisis longer than 72 hours and can be held longer through a court-issued order.
“When a person is stabilized within the 72 hours, the healthcare team will help connect them to outpatient mental health services and begin getting them ready to leave,” Paoli said.
While searching through Tamura’s car, which investigators say he drove from Nevada to New York, detectives say they found weapons, ammunition, and prescription medication. However, investigators have not yet revealed what that medication may have been for.