Posted on 05/26/2023 8:26:51 AM PDT by Salman
(The Center Square) – The suicide rate for Chicago police is higher than in other big cities, with seven CPD officers dying by suicide last year. That’s more than 2020 and 2021 combined.
Now, the Fraternal Order of Police, the labor union representing front-line Chicago cops, has an option for its members.
The group has developed part of its building at 1412 West Washington into the First Responders Wellness Center, a clinic run by former first responders who are mental health professionals.
“It’s prevention,” Dr. Carrie Steiner, a psychologist and former police officer working at the wellness center, told The Center Square. “We want to see how they are doing. They get to meet us and look around. So if something does happen, they know us and they can reach out.”
Most officers develop a game face. It’s hard for people to know when officers are struggling, Steiner said.
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(Excerpt) Read more at cwbchicago.com ...
Thanks, Demonrats! These tragic deaths are all on you!
Maybe if they let police do their job without fear of being called racist every time they arrest somebody, and feeling
like they’re wasting their time when criminals aren’t being prosecuted when they are arrested.
Marko
Under Illinois law anyone utilizing these services due to a risk of suicide has to surrender their firearms.
“What is a Red Flag in Illinois Gun Law?
A “red flag” is any sign pointing to a person’s potential intent or likelihood to commit an act of violence against themselves or others. These can include threats or comments about violence, a history of lashing out aggressively, or social media posts and text messages about violence. These red flags can also include signs of a person’s potential violence against themselves, such as a history of self-harm or deep depression.
Under the Firearms Restraining Order Act, these “red flags” may serve as evidence to petition for an individual to have their firearms removed for at least two weeks. Recognizing and noting these signs of potential violence can be vital in assuring that a petition for a temporary firearms restraining order is granted and knowing that a person is protected from hurting themselves or others.”
If you’d let them do the job they were hired to do, maybe their morale, and mental health would improve.
I have a hard time accepting “not being allowed to do their job” as a reason for suicide.
It can add to the pressures of the job, and problems that law enforcement people may already be experiencing, like family problems, money problems, alcoholism, drugs, etc. Those types of problems can adversely affect your private life, and your work life. You have no idea how frustrating, and morale busting it is, not being allowed to do your job. Rounding up criminals, completing all the required paperwork, just to see the same perps released within hours, and having to deal with a revolving door system, where most repeat offenders are never punished/locked away. It's a freaking joke. I doubt very much that the street/patrol officers get many atta' boys these days. There's no way they feel appreciated. Not in the big cities anyway. Then to see your fellow officers shot and killed? People need a healthy, and safe work environment, that includes positive mental health, and feeling safe, and you also need to know that you are appreciated, while contributing something to the system. How many police officers in NY City or Chicago, do you think feel like they're actually contributing anything to controlling the crime there?
I wasn't a police officer, but I was a peace officer, working for NY State Corrections. We had the same revolving door system with locking inmates up for disciplinary problems. As soon a convict was sent to the box for fighting or some other violent offense, they had to be released to make room for another convict. They never had enough cells to hold inmates for very long. And eventually, the Department decided that too many misbehavior reports were being written, so many were simply tossed out and not heard, charges were reduced, and punishments were withheld. It was basically the same thing that has been going on with this country's criminal justice system, and the manipulation of crime statistics in liberal-run cities. I was already divorced with two sons to raise when I took the job. I had to pick up and move, in order to start the job. The day I started, I was told that the average life expectancy for an officer was 58 years of age. That was the age I would be when I could retire. They told me that alcoholism, divorce, and suicide were very high among officer rank. I made a vow to myself that day, that I wasn't going to die working for NY State.
I wasn't a drinker, but a lot of the guys I worked with were, especially the officers on the day shift. They would leave work at 3 p.m., go down to the local watering hole, sit there for hours slugging down drinks, and all the time, they would talk about what went on at work that day...bitching about so and so Sergeant, Lieutenant or Captain who had given them grief, or a convict they'd had to deal with. One of the biggest problems on the job was brass that wouldn't support an officer or the Sergeant in charge, and would overturn their orders or decisions as it related to controlling the inmates. It was like getting a big fat slap in your face, because the inmates knew it, and it weakened you in their eyes. It happened far more than it should have.
People need to leave the job at the time clock when they punch out, not take it home with you, but many do. So if your work environment sucks, and you take it home, it only adds to whatever issues you may already be facing at home.
Another problem that regularly occurred, was that both male and female officers, whether married or not, hooked up with people they met on the job. Not a good idea. I'm sure the same things happens on police forces.
I was fortunate, because besides my kids, I had outside interests to take my mind off the job when I was off-duty...college, history buff, reading, traveling. Some of the male officers worked second jobs on their days off...doing construction, etc., and during the winter, a lot of them plowed snow for extra cash. Some of them also hunted. A lot of the guys had that in common. I worked with a lot of nice people, but unfortunately, there were at least 5 people I worked with over my careerthat committed suicide. I have no idea what their demons were, but they chose to end their lives.
I've been retired for almost 20 years, and feel very fortunate that I've had that long a retirement. I think being able to separate the job from my personal life while I was working really helped. I wasn't one of those people who was afraid to retire because they didn't think they'd have enough to keep them busy. In all the years I worked, and in all the years I've been retired, I've kept in touch with only one of the officers that I worked with early in my career. We only worked together for my first three years on the job, but as females, we both had children, and similar experiences on the job. Every so often I meet her and her husband for lunch. And we hardly ever talk about the job we had.
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