Stepping Up
2017 Out of Darkness Walk shows how law enforcement is
moving forward to raise awareness for suicide prevention
n BY MITCHELL KRUGEL
Honor Guards from Morris County Corrections Local 151,
Union County Corrections Local 199, Bergen County Sheriff’s
Department Local 134 and Middlesex County Corrections Local
152 led the pack for the annual Central Jersey Out of Darkness
Walk at Thompson Park in Monroe Township on Oct. 18 in what
stood as a seminal moment for corrections officers. For all law
enforcement officers. For their families.
Leading hundreds of walkers out to raise awareness for suicide
prevention — and bring attention to an affliction that has hit cor-
rections officers so hard – might have been small steps for law
enforcement. But they were gia nt leaps for their mental health
and wellness.
The presence, persistence and passion to move forward in sis-
ters’ and brothers’ keeping continues to grow for NJ State PBA
members, perhaps no more so than in corrections, where com-
ing out of the darkness is often a daily challenge. Another dozen
members of NJ law enforcement have been lost to suicide this
year, matching the total from 2016.
Suicide continues to be a personal matter for law enforce-
ment. The four honor guards from PBA Locals at the Darkness
Walk have experienced at least nine suicides amongst officers in
their jails the past 10 years. And though their first priority for be-
ing here was honoring their lost brothers and their families, their
honor guarding was also a reminder for all law enforcement not
to be afraid to call for help.
“The last thing officers want to show is any type of weakness
to their peers, and I believe that is one of the causes,” observes
Local 134 State Delegate Andy Pacucci, co-chair of the State PBA
Corrections Committee, who has been bringing his now 12-year-
old daughter Francesca to the Darkness Walk since she was in a
stroller. “A day like this reminds us that we are not alone. Other
officers have the same issues as you and there are people here
to support you and care for you. So don’t be afraid to make that
call.”
Walking the toughest beat
Local 151 walked for the first time this year in remembrance of
member Timothy Stoll, who took his life on Father’s Day in 2016.
A former Marine and member of the department’s honor guard,
Stoll was remembered as a beloved officer.
And that makes it all the more difficult to figure how this hap-
pened to Stoll. As he prepared to walk, Local 151 State Delegate
Rodney Furby confided that Stoll’s death still hits him hard.
“Sometimes, you don’t see any warning signs,” Furby added.
“Which in this case we didn’t.”
So what goes through the minds of officers on a day like
this? Certainly, some thought wonders how many of their own
go through the bad things, the divorces, the loss of family and
don’t show any signs of stress mounting. And there are the dan-
gers that lurk everywhere, especially in the jail where officers are
locked in with inmates who outnumber them, who have hidden
weapons and a lot of cunning.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 46
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