As Another NYPD Suicide This Summer Rocks City, Officials Tell Cops: ‘It Is Okay To Seek Help From Others’
Seven officers have died by suicide so far this year, including five since June. After one of those deaths last month, Commissioner James O'Neill referred to the deaths as a "mental health crisis" that the NYPD and "the law enforcement profession as a whole must take action."
The New York Times:
Fifth N.Y.P.D. Officer Since June Dies By Suicide, Police Say
A New York police officer was found dead at his Staten Island home on Saturday after shooting himself in what was the fifth police suicide in the city since June, officials said. Officials did not immediately release the officer’s name, rank or tenure with the department; however, the Sergeants Benevolent Association said on Twitter that it was a sergeant who had died. “Once again terrible news,” the message said. “Tonight the NYPD lost a sergeant to suicide. We ask that everyone pray for his family, friends and Co-workers. The NYPD continues to go through a difficult time.” (Zaveri, 7/27)
CNN:
An NYPD Officer Has Died By Suicide. It's The 7th Such Death This Year
"The tragic news today that another member of the NYPD has been lost to suicide breaks our hearts, and is a deep sorrow felt by all of New York City," Police Commissioner James O'Neill said in a statement released late Saturday. "To every member of the NYPD, please know this: it is okay to feel vulnerable. It is okay if you are facing struggles," he said. "And it is okay to seek help from others. You may not know this, and it may be hard to imagine, but you are not out there all by yourself." (Morales and Almasy, 7/28)
NBC News:
'Mental Health Crisis': Fifth NYPD Officer Dies By Suicide In Two Months
On June 5, Deputy Chief Steven Silks, 62, was found dead in a police vehicle in Queens just days away from retirement. About 24 hours later, Detective Joseph Calabrese, 58, was found dead at Brooklyn's Plum Beach. Just a few days later, a 29-year-old officer died outside a precinct on Staten Island. Kevin Preiss, 53, a 24-year veteran of the force, was found dead at his Long Island home at the end of the month. "This is a mental health crisis," O’Neill declared in June after the third death. (Madani, 7/28)
NBC New York:
I-Team: Police Officers’ Stigma Attached To Seeking Help Hinders NYPD's Suicide Prevention Efforts
It’s been four years now, but Gloria Benitez remembers that day so vividly. It was March 10, 2015. She had come home from work and went to look for her son Jose. She discovered him dead in his room, a result of suicide.“I tried to help him but I think it was too late,” Benitez. “But the way they treated him, it was not right.” (7/26)
