| A line of
duty death. There is no bigger crisis in law enforcement
than an officer who has been killed in the line of duty.
The death affects the officer’s family, the extended
family of the agency and/or department, and the community
at large.
When an officer dies it sends shockwaves throughout the
department and causes major trauma. And, with this trauma
comes the repercussions of traumatic stress.
Two of the most likely immediate reactions are shock
and disbelief/denial. One might struggle with thoughts
such as “This just couldn’t happen to him/her”
and/or “I was just talking to them last night. He/she
can’t be dead!”
Then the guilt. “I shouldn’t have taken the
day off. If I had been working he wouldn’t have
died”, and/or “If we wouldn’t have argued
he/she would have been focused on his/her job”.
The tormenting thoughts of guilt can be endless.
The ever present bargaining with God. “If you will
only let him/her live, I’ll never touch another
drink” and/or “I won’t ever complain
about the paperwork again”.
Eventually, acceptance comes. But I’m getting ahead
of the story.
There are at least three types of line of duty deaths.
• Felony assault
• Motor vehicle incident/ accident
• Heart Attack or other physical response to the
job
Although any death is a traumatic loss to family and
friends, the felonious assault is perhaps the hardest
to cope with. This is because someone murdered an officer,
a coworker, a spouse, a father/mother, etc. Plain and
simple.
Death can be through a shooting or vehicular homicide.
Regardless of the type of death, this leaves someone to
blame, and usually the criminal justice system to deal
with the trauma. As if investigations, paperwork, funeral,
and heartache were not enough, then all those involved
must endure the judicial process of this event. A trial
of a murderer, especially when one has become emotionally
involved, can re-traumatize the family and friends of
the officer.
An auto accident is bad enough. Usually, there is some
reason for the accident – there is likely some form
of explanation. Likewise, if the death is due to health
issues, there is often a precipitating cause, such as
extreme stress. Regardless of cause, anger may well be
directed at the agency or department the officer worked
for.
In my experience as a law enforcement officer and police
chaplain, I have worked line of duty deaths. I have made
notifications to family members when their officer has
been shot. To be sure, there is typically a lot of initial
support for the officer’s family. And, with law
enforcement, it is very much indeed a family. It is frequently
called, ‘The Thin Blue Line or Blue Circle”.
Police work is a sub-culture all of its own. Few if any
outsiders are trusted.
The 80/20 principal is in effect. Officers deal day in
and day out with other people’s problems. They see
and experience the worst of the worst. They deal with
the same people over and over again. So much so that officers
begin to believe that everyone “out there”
is bad. It’s us (the cops) against them (the crooks).
Fact is 20% of the people cause 80% of the problems.
But when an officer deals over and over with the same
people day after day, it is easy to see how everyone looks
like a “dirt bag”.
The truth of course is everyone isn’t bad. At least
80% of the people we meet are good. The perception just
gets warped. Thus, the 80/20 principal. But perceptions
are truth to the one perceiving. So those on the outside
dealing with law enforcement trauma need to understand
the officer’s perception. Don’t allow your
own perceptions to interfere when working with officers.
It’s not about what you think or feel, it is about
their perceptions.
Most often you are there for crisis intervention .You
deal with it through respect and education. Respect for
the officer and the job he/she does, and educating yourself
about that job. The more you understand the police sub-culture,
the more apt you are to have your help accepted in a trauma
situation involving an officer.
The families of surviving officers in the department
are always impacted. In a recent line of duty death, the
spouses of those officers immediately wanted their husbands/wives
to quit the job. And it’s understandable. They see
the pain and grief the family of the deceased officer
is going through, and they want their officer out, now!
Problem is, it only adds to the stress of the moment.
The usual signs and symptoms of an acute stress reaction
are there. Depending on many variables, stress reactions
can last from a few hours to weeks. How close a person
was to the officer, their own personal trauma history,
social support system, and general health are big factors
in how each individual handles the death of an officer.
You will find the physical, behavioral, emotional, and
spiritual reactions are there, as with most any trauma.
When it is one of your own it is worse. The signs and
symptoms are seemingly more severe and appear to take
longer to resolve.
Those who are not involved in law enforcement on a day
to day basis, but who may be called to help an individual
officer, family member, friend or an entire department
should understand what they are going to be dealing with.
Another key component other than the 80/20 principal
is cops don’t like to be counseled. They believe
it is a sign of weakness to seek help. Frankly, they want
to be in control, and being out of control can potentially
throw them into a panic. They will struggle to take back
that control.
They refuse to be perceived by others as weak. They are
afraid other officers will question if they will be there
to back them up in a pinch. Cops are taught to restrain
their emotions.
The best thing an outsider can do is move patiently through
the process. Listen, listen, and listen. When you are
done listening, listen some more. Be a sounding board.
The key thing is that you must be comfortable with silence,
something many of us aren’t.
They used to tell us in the appliance sells business,
when there is a pause in the conversation, the first one
to speak looses. This is often true in dealing with officers.
If an officer is telling his/her story, and there is a
pause don’t be in a rush to fill the space with
words. Just let the officer move at his/her own pace.
Don’t rush the process. The use of many words just
to fill a void doesn’t fix anything. Silence and
patience is far more powerful in the healing process than
speaking at the wrong time. Become comfortable with silence
and consider it to be one of your greatest tools.
When listening, keep in mind that officers tend to think
in very black and white terms, seldom in gray. They deal
in absolutes. Therefore you will need to set aside your
own ideas, meet them where they are at, and deal in absolutes.
Remember, the biggest part of crisis intervention or
counseling in dealing with anyone who has experienced
a trauma is listening. My mom used to say, “God
gave you two ears and one mouth” that ought to tell
you something”.
Frequently just letting a person who has experienced
a trauma vent is all that is necessary. Allowing them
to talk is often the best therapy. So let them talk. You
don’t have to provide the answer. You are not there
to “fix” anything. You are there as a non-judgmental
sounding board.
When an officer puts on his/her uniform, kisses the spouse
and kids goodbye, and goes to work, never to come home
again, it takes a high toll on everyone around. A line
of duty death has far reaching effects on the department.
A line of duty funeral is a very intense and a huge event
that can draw thousands of officers from many miles away.
Hopefully the department has a police funeral coordinator/consultant
or has access to one that can smoothly handle the planning/coordinating
of such an event.
The American Association of Police Officers offers a
funeral coordinator/consultant at no cost. The director
is John Cooley, a retired LAPD Sergeant. He has handled
countless line of duty deaths prior to retiring from the
LAPD and continues to do so know as a consultant. He can
be contact through www.policeusa.com.
I’m also available to any agency or department
who needs help with trauma, grief and/or loss. I may be
contacted at my email address below.
If training is needed to learn how to assist departments,
officers, families of officers, etc. resources are available
through a number of agencies. Both the National Center
for Crisis Management and the American Academy of Experts
in Traumatic Stress have a number of tremendous certification
programs. These programs are well designed to assist and/or
equip officers and departments in their time of need.
The bottom line is grief and trauma take time to resolve.
Police officers are human just like anyone else. You can
be of great help to an officer, agency or community. But
if you are serious about helping, prepare yourself and
be ready. You may be the one who receives the call, ‘There
has been a line of duty death…..”.
David J. Fair holds a PhD from Bethel Bible College
and Seminary. He is a member of the American Academy of
Expert’s in Traumatic Stress/ National Center for
Crisis Management. He holds board certifications in: Expert
in Traumatic Stress, School Crisis Response, Crisis Chaplain,
and Forensic Traumatology. Additionally he is a Fellow
of the AAETS.
Fair is Board Certified in Homeland Security Level
IV (CHS-IV) and serves on the curriculum committee of
the Board of Certification in Homeland Security. He is
also a member of the editorial review board of Inside
Homeland Security where he writes the Chaplain’s
Column.
Fair serves of the board of the Academy of Certified
Chaplains holding their certification as a level three
master chaplain (ACMC-III)
Chaplain Fair is immediate past chair of the International
Conference Police Chaplain’s Educational Committee
and a former board member. Dr. Fair is Chaplain Emeritus
of the Brownwood, Texas Police Department and a Chaplain
for the Texas Department of Public Safety and a reserve
officer/chaplain for the Brown County Sheriff’s
Department.
Fair is a professor for Bethel Bible College and
Seminary and on the facility of the Wayne E. Oates Institute.
Chaplain Fair can be contacted at ChaplainDFair@gmail.com.
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