Real and Perceived Danger in Police Officer Assisted Suicide

In order the determine the danger involved, 123 cases of police officer assisted suicide were collected from various sources & the contents analyzed. In 56% of incidents, police or bystanders were threatened with lethal force & in 22%, an intermediate level of threat was present. In the remaining 22% of cases, there was no real danger with the subject using an empty gun or a prop. These nondangerous incidents were typically perceived as more dangerous & resulted in a slightly higher percentage of subjects being killed by police. The only variable that distinguished the nondangerous incidents, prior planning by the subjects, was unlikely to be useful for guiding police tactics in actual situations. (27 refs.)