SUICIDE RESEARCH 1
Research Paper Assignment
Nancy D LeSueur
Helms School of Government, Liberty University
SUICIDE RESEARCH 2
Introduction
Law enforcement suicide has and is a big problem in the United States and all
over the world. Suicide is a complex behavior that has many factors that not only the
affect the person but their loved ones and friends. Police officers and firefighters are more
likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty, a troubling trend that researchers say
didn’t improve in 2020 despite national suicide rates decreasing. [ CITATION Sta22 \l
1033 ]Most law enforcement suicides are related to their jobs and the traumatic things
that they have seen that they refuse to get help for. “come to me, all you who are weary
and burdened, and I will give you rest” (New King James Version, 2003, Matthew 11:28).
On a daily basis, law enforcement experience job related incidents that cause
extremely traumatic events. These events may include murders, vehicle crashes, and even
suicides. Because of the issues that the law enforcement officers may come into contact
with, it may affect their mental and physical wellbeing. A lot of departments to not think
about the extra stressors their offices may have to come into contact with. Police officers
are subjected, daily, to critical incidents and work-related stressors that negatively impact
nearly every aspect of their personal and professional lives. They have resisted openly
acknowledging this for fear of being labeled.[ CITATION Cra21 \l 1033 ]
Risk Factors
When talking about suicide and law enforcement officers it comes with many
risks. These risk are behaviors and characteristics that we as friends, families, and
coworkers need to look out for our loved ones. Some risk factors may include mental
SUICIDE RESEARCH 3
disorders, substance disorder, accuses to lethal means, social isolation, chronic illness and
or disability, and exposure to traumatic events just to name a few.
There are lots of stressors that law enforcement officers are exposed too during
their low enforcement career. For example, in a study that examined sources of stress
among police officer, the top concerns identified by officers involved performing day-to-
day enforcement activities that put them in potentially unsafe situations, as well as
responding to less frequent but more traumatic events.[CITATION NAT18 \l 1033 ]
Support from Agencies
During traumatic incidents in law enforcement agencies should have lots of
resources immediately available for their officers. Growing evidence suggests that many
first responders and other public safety personnel in Canada may be experiencing
substantial difficulties with symptoms of mental health disorders. There have been
suggestions that such difficulties may be associated with increased exposure to
potentially traumatic events as part of working in public safety, with some people
suggesting specific types of events may be particularly problematic. The current results
support both suggestions and may be important for informing the national action plan
mandated by the Prime Minister of Canada.[ CITATION Car19 \l 1033 ]
Law enforcement officers carry many tools on their duty belts that are
important like flashlight, handcuffs, weapon, or ballistic vest. But while they are at work
they also need to have peer support and agency support for mental health. Mental health
SUICIDE RESEARCH 4
needs to be on the important parts of the tools as well. Agencies need to ensure that their
officers know that there are numerous local and national support services for first
responders. But as a whole, the agency itself needs to advocate and support their own in
the time of need. Agencies need to be prepared in advance and also have polices in place
for support. These “tough guys”- the term includes both men and women are routinely
exposed to special kinds of traumatic events and daily pressures that requires certain
adaptively defensive toughness of attitude, temperament, and training [ CITATION Mil95
\l 1033 ].
Having policies, intervention services, and critical incident stress debriefing also
helps the officer who has gone through a traumatic incident know that they have support
and that it is ok to ask for help if it provided for them. A police officer in need of mental
services after a traumatic event also needs to know that they do not have to be the “tough
guy” and it is ok to ask for help if they may need it. CISD is a structured intervention
designed to promote the emotional processing of traumatic events through the ventilation
and normalization of reactions, as well as preparations for possible future experiences.
CISD is an essential technique associated with efficient and effective Critical Incident
Stress Management (CISM)[ CITATION Mil99 \l 1033 ].
Christian Worldview
Being that I am law enforcement myself, I have found myself in situations that I
mentally needed help with. I have seen and heard things that I would never want any
others to know or ever see. They say that God gives his toughest battles to his strongest
soldiers. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. (New King James
Version, 2003, Philippians 4:13).
SUICIDE RESEARCH 5
God handpicked law enforcement officers to do the job that they do with his plan
for their lives. If you believe in God and pray to him, he will see you through any
situation as long as you put your faith into him. If you are thinking about suicide, we
need to ask God to help lead us through the hard times and don’t be afraid to ask for help
when you are in need. No one needs to let the devil take you over to his side.
Yinger says First Responders' Bridge has seen its retreats fill up 40% faster than
before the pandemic. The group offers three retreats a year across the state of Ohio.
"We have noticed more and more attendees showing signs of complex trauma, not only
due to COVID-19 but the riots that were taking place, the lack of support from
administrations and a society that appeared to turn on them, all within a short period of
time," he said. Among its recommendations to address rates of suicide among first
responders, the Ruderman Foundation paper suggests expanding programs that promote
mental health awareness for these groups, monitoring the mental health of retired
personnel and newly hired recruits and mandated reporting of suicide deaths and
attempts. Currently, no government organization is mandated to track such deaths.
[ CITATION Sta22 \l 1033 ]
The love and support of fellow officers is one thing that the men and women that
wear a badge need and want. Law enforcement officers spend more time with fellow
officers at times then their own families. Having their support for different struggles in
life is a huge thing. This belief in the power of peers to help individual officers cope with
stress and trauma is not an accident.[ CITATION Law21 \l 1033 ]
SUICIDE RESEARCH 6
In Closing
As communities, families, friends, and agencies as a whole, we need to support
everyone regardless of what profession one may be when it comes to suicide. Everyone
was put on earth by God for a reason and we need to trust in god to see us through our
paths and wait for him to call us home when he is ready. We cannot let the devil take us
over. “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (New
King James Verison, 2003, James 4:7).
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