The NJ Police Chief Magazine Volume 24, Number 8 | Page 5

The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | November 2018
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medicated, and a big deal is usually made of scheduling and completing the initial interview which also often
becomes a stressful experience that only adds to the drama. Particularly disturbing are recent events where officer
videos could, conceivably, be in the hands of the media before the officer ever gets to review it. There simply has to
be a better way.
I also talked to physicians very experienced in evaluating and counseling both law enforcement officers and
members of the military such as the well respected Dr. Gary Glass in a continuing effort to understand all of this
better. Dr. Glass states that the age of military shooters is usually lower and that he believes that this youthfulness
contributes to the ability to rebound. He also believes that the military, being subject to simpler rules of
engagement, better understand their role and understand that they usually had no choice. Very simply, kill or risk
yourself or a beloved squad mate being killed.
Dr. Glass and I, in fact, recently had the experience of attending a small symposium organized by Dean Marissa
Levy, Ph.D., at Stockton University to discuss officer recovery in a comprehensive setting. We were joined by four
officers who were shooters in recent events, three of the four fatal. All four have since retired due to stress related
to the respective incidents. Two had also been previous members of the military and at least one had also killed in
defense of this country in a foreign land. All discussed the immediate deleterious loss of police community from
being removed from their teammates. Several mentioned they felt they were not trusted by being disarmed,
although all four were eventually cleared of all wrongdoing. Several mentioned that they experienced hostility,
sometimes from their own community members and more commonly by outside agitators who were hostile to police.
Finally, all mentioned that they felt this was clearly a case on their parts of being made to feel guilty until they were
proven innocent.
I found the stories from these officers compelling and, hearing them again, I wanted more than ever to help carry
the burden these officers will carry always. I remembered the four fine officers I have lost due to this and I can’t
forget that they were where they were and that they did what they did in defense of their (this) community.
It occurred to me that no true leader should send his/her people into harm’s way and, when something like
this happens, not do everything in their power not to fix what can be fixed. I am clearly not the first law
enforcement executive to realize this, or to feel this way.
Research is sorely needed on these matters. We need to understand why political administrations would
inappropriately release thousands of dangerous individuals into communities with no defense or potential
intervention but for the police. They had to know this would be the inevitable result. If the police are to remain these
inevitable, yet involuntary, interventionists to those unwise actions we need to provide the training, intervention
equipment and rules of engagement to best resolve the situations we have been handed. Lives can and should
be saved and it's incumbent on all of us to get to that place where they can be. Lastly, when the inevitable
occasionally continues to happen as it will, let’s get to a place where the officers put in this agonizing
position are not immediately treated like the accused and to help to develop a system that will properly support
them so they can recover to the greatest extent possible. As leaders and human beings it’s really the least we can
do…
Fraternally,
Chief Richard J. Buzby, Jr.
NJSACOP President
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