“Greg believed in the Iraq war and in his abilities as a warrior. Twice he served his country in combat, first in Kosovo and then in Iraq as an elite Army Ranger. He went back to his job as a Milwaukee police officer shortly after returning home from Iraq. Greg typed a suicide note on his computer and left two copies in his home. The final line states: "We will just leave it as war being one hell of a bitch no matter how big or small it’s found." Greg died two days before he would have turned 27. He shot himself in the head with his police gun in the basement of his home. He won't be listed among the American soldiers who died so far in Iraq, but people he loved and even those he served with in combat consider his death a casualty of war.” 

 http://www.lineof duty.com

In my view, police work may be considered “civilian combat”. Research in police suicide indicates much the same type of effect as military combat.  The officer involved in both military and civilian combat can experience the “double-barreled” effect of trauma. A good amount of epidemiological evidence suggests that there is an elevated rate of suicide within law enforcement. Matthew Hickman from the Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that 11,380 law enforcement officers were called for military reserve service from all agencies during the time period studied, compared with gains of about 2,600 new hires. At least 23% of all police agencies had officers called for reserve duty during that time, according to Hickman

Last year, the Army had 140 suspected suicides among active-duty troops, an all-time high. Each military branch saw an increase in the number of suicides among its ranks from 2007 to 2008. This is a situation that is all too common among returning deployed veterans. It appears that the risk of suicide may be even greater among combat veterans who are police officers. There has been research which points to this grim possibility, however, we do not yet know the actual number of returning police officers who have completed suicide. 

Given research findings of increased suicide risk among veterans and police officers, it is probable that a combination of both experiences will only make things worse. Police officers are hesitant to seek help for such problems as PTSD or mental depression.  It has been my experience that police officers view themselves as “problem solvers”, not people with problems.  There is also a fear of repercussions resulting from seeking help for mental health issues. Police officers may perceive that seeking help may compromise their position or promotions.  Having your firearm taken away and being placed on a desk job may be considered an ultimate factor of shame among peers.

The question is what to do about it. The key is to first understand yourself. I think that we all know when we are feeling good or bad, happy or depressed, troubled or not. Use your police “instinct”- investigate your own symptoms of PTSD with the same vigor that you investigate crimes. In this case, the “bad guy” is not out on the street, but may be inside of you.  If you have been involved in military combat, all the more reason to seek out therapy. 

Trauma exposure in policing has profound impacts on officers. Such exposure, combined with war, can take a terrible toll on law enforcement. Exactly how to measure the impact over time that police work has on suicide is a difficult question.  It will likely take long term studies to make sense out of suicide, and I am optimistic that our present research will open new doors to prevention. I can with some assurance state that police work serves as a fertile arena for suicide precipitants, including trauma, culturally approved alcohol use, maladaptive coping, and firearms availability. Contextually, police work is a probable part of the causal chain of suicide. Suicide rates are important to understand, but the more important task is to determine how to prevent police suicides. When the brave men and women serve our country as well as protect our society, they deserve no less.

Dr. John M. Violanti