Resource Tag: SUICIDE BY COP

Objectives. To describe all-outcome injurious shootings by police and compare characteristics of fatal versus nonfatal injurious shootings nationally. Methods. From July 2021 to April 2023, we manually reviewed publicly available records on all 2015–2020 injurious shootings by US police, identified from Gun Violence Archive. We estimated injury frequency, case fatality rates, and relative odds of death by […]

Suicide by cop (SbC) is a variant of victim-precipitated homicide. In SbC, a citizen intent on dying provokes police, often with credible threats of violence. A fatality results in ambiguity about manner of death (homicide versus suicide). Decedents’ families may raise claims of civil-rights violations, asserting insufficient restraint by officers. Police officers, when questioned, may […]

A victim of childhood violence and neglect, Tony Kalluk spent half of his first forty years in jail or on probation. He was angry, violent; he attempted “suicide by police” but was only shot in the leg. Later something changed; he returned home to Clyde River, became a counselor to others in distress, and started […]

Aims: To evaluate Together for Life, a suicide prevention program for the Montreal police. Methods: All 4,178 members of the Montreal police participated. The program involved training for all officers, supervisors, and union representatives as well as establishing a volunteer helpline and a publicity campaign. In the 12 years since the program began the suicide […]

Journal copy held in CSP Library.

The majority of police suicide research has focused on larger police departments. Very little research has been done within small departments. The present study compared suicide rates between small and larger police departments. The annual suicide rate varied significantly across departments. Smaller police departments had a significantly higher suicide rate than large departments. Possible reasons […]

~

In comparison to heterosexual youth, sexual minority youth are more likely to experience victimization. Multiple studies have connected anti-gay prejudice and anti-gay victimization to negative outcomes. Research shows that social support may protect sexual minorities from the harmful effects of anti-gay victimization. However, rates of victimization and the negative outcomes linked to sexual identity within […]

Provoking police officers to kill oneself or Òsuicide by copÓ (SBC) has received scholarly as well as public attention. The extent to which film representations of SBC reflect SBC in society in relation to danger, depression, and other features was assessed in this study. Data on cinematic portrayals of SBC are from 16 American films; […]

The authors, a forensic psychiatrist & an assistant city attorney, present findings from their work in suicide-by-cop cases. The following areas are discussed: incident nomenclature & definition; decedent profiles & incident characteristics; psychological sequelae experienced by officers & law enforcement agencies; law enforcement training; & issues arising in subsequent litigation. JA

It is not known how many cases of suicide-by-cop take place in the United States – they are not uncommon. Education is needed to create awareness of the existence & nature of these incidents within medical examiners’ offices, law enforcement agencies, & the judiciary. Credible analysis of the variables & dynamics of these incidents will […]

This chapter describes historical, personality, behavioural, & situational factors of law enforcement-assisted suicides, which are also known as suicide-by-cop subjects. It also examines intervention tactics used by law enforcement officers during these incidents. Although suicide-by-cop shares several characteristics with other suicide attempts, it appears to be unique due to the involvement of other people. In […]

This booklet is written for police officers, firefighters, & other first-line responders who deal with people in psychological distress, including those who are suicidal. Topics covered include: suicide facts & figures; the contribution of police, firefighters, & other first-line responders to suicide prevention; helping someone who is suicidal; when a suicide attempt occurs; when a […]

This chapter offers insight into how officers cope with both the short- & long-term psychological effects of suicide-by-cop. Interviews with officers involved in suicide or suicide attempts, self-labeled as suicide-by-cop, were reviewed in light of varied psychological effects on the officers. Impact on officers’ sense of self, family life, interpersonal relationships, & job functions were […]

Regardless of the amount of crisis-intervention training, certain strategies can be applied by police officers & crisis negotiators responding to a suicide-by-cop incident. The primary goals of establishing a rapport with the subject, assessing the violence & suicidal potential, & instilling hope within the subject always should be pursued. Directing the subject away from suicide-by-cop […]

Suicide-by-cop represents a currently understudied & most probably under-reported phenomenon that deserves serious attention. Police officers are involved in situations in which they not only lose control of the confrontation, but also become the means to the end in a civilian’s death. The phenomenon can be examined from a social psychological perspective by considering the […]

This chapter examines the underlying causes of lethal threats against police personnel in North America that can be attributed directly to incidents of suicide-by-cop. Over 500 separate, documented incidents in which police personnel in the United States & Canada have been confronted by a potentially lethal threat are analyzed. In roughly 10% of fatal police […]

This chapter explores the medical examiner’s investigative process leading to the final manner of death determination in a “death at the hands of police”. A comparison of police shooting cases investigated by several Chief Medical Examiner’s offices in a large metropolitan area reveals that it varies by office & by examiner. The final classification by […]

This chapter presents & discusses a set of training materials for police departments aimed at helping police officers cope with victim-precipitated homicide. Materials focus on providing officers with a range of intervention strategies to attempt to reduce the risk associated with these situations for both the officer & the perpetrator. These strategies are intended to […]

This chapter discusses the suicide-by-cop syndrome & the role of training. Law enforcement agencies need to provide training that will improve safety, performance, & awareness. A primary concern for law enforcement trainers is properly addressing the balance between giving information & possibly generating hesitation on the part of the officer to react appropriately. In training […]

This chapter reviews many contemporary incidents of school shootings, displays some commonalities of the involved juveniles, &, most important, highlights how many of these juveniles intended to end the event by drawing law enforcement into a dealy confrontation where the student would die by police deadly force. JA

This chapter presents an analysis of self-destructive behaviour as depicted by the ancient Greek playwright Sophocles in two of his dramas, “Oedipus Rex” and “Antigone”. It is concluded the self-destructive behaviour depicted illustrates some of the psychodynamic processes often present in the minds of suicidal individuals but that the plays do not present new ideas […]

The frequency & characteristics of suicide-by-cop cases among a nonrandom sample of 707 North American officer-involved shootings were investigated. 36% of the officer-involved shootings in the sample were found to be suicide-by-cop with high interrater agreement for category classification. Suicide-by-cop cases were more likely to result in the death or injury of the subjects. Most […]