Doc Stars of the Month: Ernie Stevens and Joe Smarro, 'Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops'

Though "Doc Star of the Month" has spotlit cops in the past (the NYPD's Sergeant Edwin Raymond of Stephen Maing's Crime + Punishment; Oakland Police Department Deputy Chief LeRonne Armstrong of Peter Nicks' The Force), this is the first time Documentary has showcased men in uniform who are breaking every conventional policing rule as part of the job.

Partners in fighting crime in the San Antonio Police Department Mental Health Unit, Ernie Stevens and Joe Smarro don't wear a uniform to work and are slow to draw a gun. The subjects of Jennifer McShane's mesmerizing (and SXSW Special Jury Prize-winning) Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops, the macho duo are tasked to deal with folks in mental distress — from a schizophrenic man who refuses to leave a public building to a drug-addicted woman intent on leaping from a bridge. They do so not through any aggressive tactics but through far more radical means — by treating those suffering "perpetrators" with a potent mix of empathy and dignity. 

And because this counterintuitive method, far more thrilling to witness than any Cops-style takedown, actually works, Documentary is honored to highlight both Ernie and Joe as November's Doc Stars of the Month.

To read my interview with the titular heroes visit Documentary magazine.