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Lots of questions, lots of talk,
a report and some slaps on the back. Then, first
stop was the “C G Inn” for a few cold
ones; next, the “Hat Tavern” for just
one more. It turned into a few boiler makers, two
more hours and who knows how many brain cells vanished
in a wash of alcohol. Two a.m. and we helped him
stumble up the back stairs to his apartment and
into the arms of his sobbing wife, with nearby crying
infant, to complete the scene.
The foregoing scenario describes what we thought
was critical incident stress management, ala thirty
plus years ago. It describes our efforts to console
a fellow officer who had been working a N.J. Safe
and Clean walking post, responded to a nearby bank
robbery call and in an exchange of shots had wounded
one of the perps.
Fellow officers who arrived at the scene wanted
to know the details first hand and some superiors
even demanded to know them. Some 3rd Degree, a hastily
prepared report and a retreat to the warm tingling
sensational tranquility that a few cold ones can
facilitate after such a stressful incident.
A more dramatic scenario for me was in the 1980s
that left a fellow squad member of our FBI, NY Office
dead. Taking in the scene of his murder, still sitting
behind the wheel with a couple of holes in his head
and his life blood sapped from him to a sanguinary
Jell-O on the cars upholstery sickened us. And,
day after day the news kept showing the scene.
The following few days were spent hunting for
his assailant. Tired, weakened, infuriated and frustrated
we searched, and attended wake and funeral. A time
in which we squad mates were treated like 2nd class
citizens by some managers and even some fellow agents/cops
for the still lurking judgments to be made even
before a full operations critique had occurred.
It further saddened us when we shot and killed
a family pet German Shephard only a few days later.
The dog bolted out of a doorway and into an alley
as we approached to execute a search warrant for
our brother’s killer. The dog, blasted with
at least three 9mm rounds from MP5s ran right back
into the living room of the basement apartment.
There it lay down, bubbling wound side up and died
right there in front of mother, father and the whole
damn family of children. The shooter wasn’t
there! With sadness now enveloping some of us and
ringing in our ears we left another tragic scene.
A few hours later, another half sleepless night
would follow.
An even more recent but thank God, less dramatic
incident involved a cold December evening, driving
to a Police Department Christmas party and ending
up in the line of fire of a pistol firing crazed
doper shooting at some apparent associate ner’-do-
wellers. A shot fired in my direction, subsequent
chase with more shots, some tense moments and ultimately
the retrieval of the shooter’s pistol resulted.
Upon arrival at the scene, my supervisor, observing
blood on the ground nearby inquired as to my welfare.
He said: “are you alright?”, “…
that’s (referring to the blood) not yours
or any of our guys (law enforcement)?” My
reply respectively was: ‘yeah, I think so”
and “No, its not”. To which my boss
responded: “OK, see you at the Christmas party.”
Do any of the three scenarios seem to you to be
an appropriate Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
or Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) type
response to those involved? Well, you’re right,
probably none. But we have learned an awful lot
in the last few years in responding to and supporting
those involved in shooting or other critical incidents.
This is particularly true when it comes to the potential
“Second Injury” (John C. Snidersich,
Critical Incidents in Policing, FBI, 1991).
The “Second Injury”, which for many
may be the more devastating, insidious and long
lasting one, is that of the emotional/psychological
reaction. Often, the “Second Injury”
is exacerbated by the employee’s fear of sharing
experiences subsequent to a critical incident. The
fears that the Department or another agency may
pursue adverse action in a use of deadly force incident,
or fear of civil action, fear of blame, appearing
weak or of some pre-conceived stigma, second guessing
by peers, superiors and the public, tend to only
exasperate the trauma. Even worse perhaps is the
real ignorance of and/or misunderstanding of the
potential for “Second Injury”, by managers,
peers and even well meaning EAP folks or colleagues.
Add to this the employee’s frustration with
the slow process of adjudication (a case of mine
took over eleven months), the sometimes natural
tendency of some managers and peers to distance
themselves from the law enforcement officer(s) involved,
and the frequent perception of those involved and
their families that the Department isn’t doing
enough. Experience has often taught us, that frequently
the worst part of a critical incident is not the
critical incident itself but what happens subsequent,
and the treatment of those involved, especially
in light of possible expectation distortions on
the part of those involved. Knowledgeable and practical
compassionate responses by managers, peers, Employee
Assistance and CISM personnel to law enforcement
officers involved in the critical incident can indeed
be critical.
Here’s how we react. We perceive a threat
mentally; say a man with a gun, now the hypothalamus
in our brain notifies the pituitary gland. From
there an urgent message is transmitted chemically
to the adrenal glands (just above each kidney) which
then start pumping adrenaline, epinephrine and cortisol
(the big guy among stress hormones). The process
occurs in the blink of an eye and is referred to
as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. These
hormones charge receptors in the brain and burn
a memory of the threat, and possibly everything
related to it (like sounds, smells, sights, etc.),
in place. Now, depending on the officer’s
personal history, the intensity and duration of
the threat exposure, the memory is imprinted quickly,
drastically and often permanently. This is done
whether the officer’s perceptions are right,
wrong, exaggerated, real or not. And this can be
for any traumatic event, auto accidents, sexual
assault, use of deadly force, etc. The God/Nature
given process can help us react, ‘Fight or
Flight’ style, and help us make the quick
association between the threat and negative consequences
immediately and in the future. But, it may be so
drastically and indelibly seared into the memory
as to drive us to dysfunction in career and later
living.
The process can become a vicious loop too. We
perceive a threat mentally, that initiates the physical
response which in turn reinforces the mind. Sometimes,
if left unchecked, unaltered or mitigated, the loop
can become vicious, debilitating and in need of
serious intervention
This hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal routing is
not the end of the story either. The stress hormones
entrench the memories of the emotionally significant
event via the Amygdala, in our brain, and the factual
content in the Hippocampus. However, an officer
operating with a predominantly competent cognitive
process before the critical incident may end up
with an emotional (or feeling) dominant process
during and after the incident. The result may sometimes
mean a clinical Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
The horrifying memories may have been stored with
such intensity, a setting too high, that the mechanism
that normally regulates this may be overridden and
the ‘emotional’ can dominate, during
and subsequent to the incident. It’s not good
for most and extremely precarious for a law enforcement
officer. Sometimes it can become a career and life
disabling emotional hangover. The International
Critical Incident Stress Foundation suggests that
as many as 75%, of officers involved in the use
of deadly force either leave or loose their career.
Perhaps, as the Bob Dylan song goes: “some
things are too hot to touch, the human mind can
only stand so much…”, “…some
of these memories we can learn to live with and
some of them we can’t”. And, being a
tough guy doesn’t always help either. Trying
to stoically stop the process is tantamount to telling
someone with dysentery to just use will power. In
fact, the image armor that we sometimes wear may
even impede healthy recovery, sort of like some
of the less than healthy age old law enforcement
remedies like alcohol and isolating, which often
lead to even worse scenarios. When, real strength
can be found in the supportive atmosphere of friends,
family and professional associates.
Recent research at Harvard University has had some
success with medical intervention in reducing Post
Traumatic Stress and even PTSD. In 2002, victims
of trauma, including auto accidents, medical emergencies,
rape and other traumatic events, were given a beta
blocker (propranolol). The victims treated with
propranolol within six hours of arriving at the
emergency room showed fewer signs of PTSD. The beta
blocker apparently mitigates the extreme emotional
imprint of the memory (amygdala) and may reduce
the likelihood of it dominating the victim’s
thoughts later. This is done hopefully without drastically
altering the factual content (hippocampus). Though
it proves no panacea to PTSD, it does demonstrate
the concern for memories stored too intensely and
offers hope in future research.
What can we do as peers, managers, organizations,
chaplains and Employee Assistance Program staff
(EAP) to help mitigate “Second Injury”?
Preparation and prevention are certainly paramount.
Indeed the one ounce pill of prevention is superior
to the one pound suppository of cure. Orientation
and training concerning the “Second Injury”,
expectations, its signs and symptoms and practical/compassionate
response by all of the above can be very helpful.
Fast, practical and basically sound intervention
practices can help dramatically. Of course, these
are to be facilitated by trained personnel. But
in the meantime there are some basics that responding
peers and managers can employ to help minimize “Second
Injury” to those involved. A succinct and
handy check list for a post shooting incident, but
which is easily adaptable to any traumatic event,
can easily be prepared. The following example gleaned
from the FBI, and other public agencies can even
be made into a vehicle sun visor placard for easy
and immediate access.
A POST SHOOTING INCIDENT
GUIDE FOR VICTIMS, PEERS AND MANAGERS:
1. Ensure your safety and the
safety of fellow personnel; notify any necessary
emergency services, such as: medical, fire and police
assistance.
2. Broadcast critical information
to responding units, such as emergency/safety factors
or hostile subjects.
3. Contact office/headquarters
and advise of incident, personnel involved and location.
Office/headquarters will make all additional necessary
notifications, including EAP, as per agency policy.
4. When safe to do so, secure
the scene and protect evidence, including weapons
involved. Do not immediately surrender firearms
to anyone outside your agency. Involved personnel
should not take part in the investigation at scene
or follow-up. If practical, immediately replace
the law enforcement officer’s weapon, if surrendered.
5. As soon as practical, the on-scene
commander is to direct that involved personnel should
be insulated (not necessarily isolated) and/or removed
form the scene (e.g., emergency room, headquarters
safe area, etc.); medical evaluation/attention should
be provided. The support and presence of a trained/experienced
peer officer, chaplain, or EAP staff is strongly
recommended.
6. Involved personnel should not
prepare a report or make a statement to any authority
until the individual has had sufficient time to
regain composure. Early consultation with private
legal counsel may also be appropriate under the
circumstances.*
Managers and co-workers are encouraged not to ask
involved person(s) specific details or release identities
of those involved. If practical, management personnel
are recommended to speak to other participating
employees who are not directly involved in the incident.
(*Note: An agency may provide emergency interim
legal representation, possibly limited to assessment
of the officer’s ‘acting within the
scope of his/her employment’ at the time of
the incident. However, attorney-client privilege
and/or conflict of interest issues may arise. It
is therefore important to know your laws and facilitate
access to private counsel before an emergency occurs.)
7. Responding managers are encouraged
to instruct involved personnel to contact spouse
and/or family pursuant to their well being. If,
personnel are injured and unable to make such contact,
management should consult with the employee as to
whom he/she wishes to make contact and/or for provision
of transportation for the spouse/family members.*
Managers are also reminded, if possible, to communicate
brief, practical explanations to involved personnel
as to all significant directives and attempt to
address the emotions of those directly involved.
(*Note: Managers should consult a prepared emergency
notification list, if time and circumstances permit,
for all employees under their supervision, including
names and numbers of person(s) an employee would
like to make such emergency notification to
spouse/family. Death notifications should be made
by trained personnel and as per sound policy.)
8. Personnel involved in a critical
incident, such as the use of deadly force, should
be afforded administrative leave for emotional and
physical well-being.
9. EAP and Chaplains should facilitate
follow-up coordination for any support services
for officer, spouse and family. This should include
coordination with the officer’s co-workers.
Ensure compliance with CISM S.O.P.s for all involved
personnel.
10. Management, as soon as practical,
should advise co-workers of status of situation
(via Demobilization, Crisis Management Briefing
or other crisis management tools, if warranted)
and update as necessary.
11. Details and additional instructions,
including on-scene investigation, critical incident
response, officer involved care, etc. should be
available via agency policy, general orders, or
manual, etc.
REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY
Johnston, Mark C. (2006). FBI’S
EAP NORTHEAST REGION QUICK GUIDE Federal Bureau
of Investigation, Employee Assistance Unit, Washington
D.C.
Lasley, Elizabeth Norton. (2007). “Memory
Research Helps Tone Down What’s Best Forgotten”.
“Brain Work The Neuroscience Newsletter”,
The Dana Foundation, Vol. 17, No. 4, July-August
2007
Snidersich, John C. (1991). “Second Injury”
Critical Incidents in Policing, Federal Bureau
of Investigation, Behavioral Science Unit, Washington
D.C.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MARK C. JOHNSTON
Mark C. Johnston, Ph.D., has appeared
before hundreds of government and private sector
audiences nationwide, as a law enforcement and management
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) professional,
utilizing a motivational theme throughout. Recently
retired from thirty years of law enforcement and
as the FBI’s Northeastern U.S. EAP Manager,
Mark managed fifty EAP Staff members serving approximately
five thousand FBI employees. He is certified and
holds membership in numerous professional associations,
including the EAP Professionals Assn., the International
Critical Incident Stress Foundation and is Board
Certified and a Diplomate in the American Academy
of Experts in Traumatic Stress.
Mark received a Doctorate in 2002, from Honolulu,
HI University, in Philosophy, emphasizing practical
spirituality perspectives in Law Enforcement. His
Master of Arts Degree was earned from Rutgers University,
Criminology. He also received a Post Graduate Degree
in Justice Management/Public Administration, from
the University of Southern California, Washington,
D.C. Public Affairs Center, and a BA (Poli. Sci./Ed.)
from N.J.’s William Paterson University. His
works: FBI Deployment Handbook, “A Guide
for Individual, Families and Managers”,
2004; EAP Quick Guide, 2006; and “Law
Enforcement Trauma and Stress, Minimizing Our “Second
Injury”, have received wide acclaim and use.
Mark authored “Spirituality, A Practical Law
Enforcement Perspective”, a featured presentation
at the national ‘Spirit of the Law’
Police Chaplains Conference, 2004.
For his volunteer work with children, Mark
received the first “Judge William Webster
Humanitarian Award” in Toronto, Canada, in
2001. Mark now lives in the greater Philadelphia
area and is the Police In-Service Training Program
Manager for the Anthony Canale Law Enforcement Training
Center. He continues instructing, lecturing, writing,
hosts a radio show and is currently working on chronicling
personal law enforcement experiences and the sometimes
“private price of public service”. |
