The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | February 2024
Continued from previous page Blue H . E . L . P . is a Massachusetts-based , volunteer-run nonprofit that works to “ acknowledge the service and sacrifice of law enforcement officers ... lost to suicide .” It has tracked police suicides since 2016 . The agency ’ s database includes reports of 120 “ command staff suicides ,” including those involving 22 chiefs , culled from the media and other sources . This suggests there are four to five police chief suicides annually in the United States .
Another measure to determine the suicide rate is computed by dividing suicides in a given time period by the population in which the deaths occurred and multiplying by 100,000 . Using available data , the crude annual suicide rate for police chiefs is as follows :
4.4 estimated police chief suicides per year ______________________________________________ X 100,000 = 35.9
12,251 municipal police chiefs
This rate is far higher than that of many other high-risk groups . It is almost twice the rate for officers and other law enforcement professionals — estimated at 18.1 per 100,000 annually . For all branches of the U . S . military in 2019 , the overall rate was 25.9 per 100,000 . Among military veterans , the rate in 2017 was 27.7 per 100,000 .
Police chiefs may have the same suicide risk factors as adults in the general population , although aspects of their position may amplify some factors . These include :
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Mental disorders , particularly clinical depression |
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History of alcohol and substance abuse |
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Feelings of hopelessness |
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Aggressive tendencies |
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Isolation ( i . e . a feeling of being cut off from other people ) |
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Barriers to accessing mental health treatment |
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Loss ( relational , social , work , or financial ) |
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Physical illness |
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Easy access to lethal methods |
Ironically in Salvatore ’ s article he makes a powerful point . “ There are articles on how chiefs can work to prevent suicide in their departments , but none on preventing it among themselves and their peers .”
Several factors may contribute to suicide risk in police officers and , by extension , chiefs .
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Job-related values may “ take over ” and affect behavior and relations outside of police work . |
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Social relations and trust may narrow over time to the department , promoting isolation and loneliness . |
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Positivity may be lost because of continuous contact with the most negative sides of society . |
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A tendency may develop toward control , problem-solving , and fixing things . |
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The danger exists of becoming psychologically worn down by always being on duty , dealing with constant stress , |
and routinely coping with frustration and potential danger . |
Military service is another strong suicide risk factor that may be common in police chiefs .
Chiefs may have any of the outlined risk factors pertaining to the public , as well as the role drift , professional insularity , negative perspective , and wrap-around stress that can affect law enforcement officers . Maladaptive coping styles may also add to their “ suicide nexus .”
Media reports on police chief suicides sometimes mention circumstances that may bear on suicide risk . Professional misconduct , criminal behavior , a gambling or other addiction problem , and retirement are often cited . Each of these may involve involuntary or voluntary loss of status and affiliation with the law enforcement community . Losing both social connectiveness and self-value may increase suicide risk .
Police chiefs facing retirement may experience suicidal thinking pending loss of identity and going “ from a life of leading and contributing to one of standing on the sidelines .”
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