We’ve seen several news
reports lately of what first responders to the San Bernardino shootings
experienced when confronting active shooters last week. That’s made me think
about those officers and what they must be going through one week later. This
was certainly a different circumstance than most officer-involved shootings. No
one has questioned that they were justified in shooting the suspects. And the
subsequent media coverage that followed has been unusual, as well, exploring
what the officers went through. Usually when an officer fatally shoots someone,
we hear about the person who died. The media shows the deceased's family and the grief
they are suffering. And they are suffering. They have lost a loved one. No
matter the circumstances, that loss is painful. But beyond their identifying
information and the debate over whether what they did was justified, we don’t
usually hear much about the officers – about what they’re going through after
such an incident. I realize many would say, “It can’t be that bad. They’re
still alive.” Yes, but many of them are forever changed. Their careers and
families can be ruined. Some even take their own lives.
All officers involved in
fatal shootings on our department must see a psychologist afterward to
determine what, if any, assistance they need in the short or long term to cope
with the trauma. I spoke with our licensed psychologist recently, Kay White, and
she said the impact these incidents have on officers runs the gamut. But one
thing she said they all have in common is that not one officer has ever indicated
he or she was pleased about or satisfied with having killed another person. As
I mentioned in my last post, no officer wants to take the life of another human
being. But sometimes, we must. Below is a video we released of an
officer-involved shooting six years ago in a South Kansas City park. You’ll see
that it’s from two different angles. The officers saw the man strike a vehicle and
flee. He drove off-road, and this is what happened (warning - the linked video contains disturbing images):
Ms. White told me the impact
a fatal shooting has on an officer depends on several factors, but large among
them are community support and media portrayals. If the public tends to stand
behind the officer, that officer tends to suffer less psychologically. But Ms.
White said she’s seeing more and more officers who are worried about the
litigation involved with protecting themselves and/or others, and what impact
possible litigation could have on their family, the department and the
community.
Even for officers against
whom there has been no public outcry, being forced to shoot someone can be
incredibly traumatic. One of our officers was brave enough to tell his story
publicly, so others would know they were not alone. This officer was one of
three who responded to a man calling 911 last year who said he “had a psychotic
urge to kill people.” Officers did everything they could to diffuse the
situation, but when the man came out of his house and pointed a gun at one of
them, they had to protect themselves, and all of them fired. The suspect died. A
subsequent search of the man’s house revealed five loaded long-guns with large
amounts of ammunition on the kitchen table and a note indicating the man
intended to have a protracted gun battle with police officers. Prosecutors
cleared all the officers of any violations of law. Still, one of them couldn’t
sleep. He replayed the incident over and over in his mind. He stopped leaving
his house. His wife and children didn’t know what to do to help him. He is now
receiving the treatment he needs and has played a significant role in
implementing mental wellness initiatives on our department.
Indeed, our psychologist
said one of the primary physical symptoms she sees among officers involved in
shootings is the inability to sleep. They have bad dreams. They can’t stop
thinking about and replaying the situation. Adrenaline is pumping in them all
the time, so they can never rest. They become socially withdrawn, anxious,
irritable and afraid to go to work. They feel like no one understands what
they’re going through. They don’t feel like they can tell anyone about their
depression because they think it would be unacceptable in a law enforcement
environment. I have seen too many of our officers who were medically retired
because of mental health issues following a traumatic event. Sometimes that’s
not a shooting. Sometimes it’s working the case of a murdered child or
something equally horrific. Our department is working to ensure these officers
are taken care of and given the time they need to recover emotionally before we
send them back out on the streets.
And it’s not just the
officers who are impacted. Their families suffer, too. Ms. White said many
family members will look at the officer differently after the event, or want
the officer to quit his or her job because it’s too dangerous. Others want to “fix” the
officer so he or she is like the loved one they knew before.
Pressure on family
members even affects loved ones of officers NOT involved in shootings. After
the officer-involved shooting in Ferguson, Mo., last year, the teenage daughter of
one of our officers wrote a private message to our department’s Facebook page
saying she was being bullied at school because her father was a police officer.
She said she knew the danger he put himself in daily, even to protect people
like the bullies, and she just wanted us to know she was very proud of him. And
the family members of one of our sergeants who just happens to be named Darrin
Wilson (the same name as the officer in the Ferguson shooting, but spelled
differently) received death threats. (KCPD’s Sgt. Darrin Wilson, for the
record, just won a Gold Award for Valor from the Metro Chiefs and Sheriffs
Association for working with another officer – both of whom were off duty at
the time – to stop a man who robbed a bank in a downtown office tower in
January, planted a live bomb in the bank and then carjacked several people.
That man pleaded guilty to federal charges of bank robbery and carjacking on
Nov. 19 and is awaiting sentencing.)
As you can see, the
effects on officers from officer-involved shootings are widespread and varied.
For many, that split-second decision in which they did what they were trained
to do to protect themselves and others is life-changing. They may not have lost
their lives, but some will never be the same.
Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org.
