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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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