Suicide By Cop

“Suicide by cop” is a phrase used to describe a situation in which a person wants to commit suicide but chooses to have police do the killing. The number of such incidents appears to have doubled during the last 10 years; however; it is not known whether there was an actual increase or merely improved recognition and reporting methods. There may be more incidents than are actually known, because many are disguised so that the suicidal intent of the person is never revealed.

Police officers are often involved in situations with suicidal persons. They are generally the first responders to situations with desperate persons who threaten to kill themselves. In addition, many other calls to the police turn into situations in which suicide is threatened. The majority of the calls involving barricaded suspects involve subjects who have threatened suicide, and perpetrators of crimes will often threaten suicide as a means to distract police officers and avoid arrest.

Any time an officer has contact with someone who is threatening suicide, the officer's safety is at risk. Once individuals have reached a point that they believe their life has no value, they may no longer value any life, including the life of the police officer attempting to help them. Suicidal individuals are not only a danger to themselves but also to family, friends, innocent hostages, and police officers. A suicidal person can easily become capable of committing homicide. This is one explanation for the numerous cases of murder/suicide across the nation. It is no longer unusual to hear about people killing their children or spouses and then killing themselves.

A suicide-by-cop incident can result whenever an officer has contact with a suicidal person. The situation can quickly change from the person threatening to kill himself to instead committing an act to provoke a police officer to kill.

A suicide plan can be either elaborate or impulsive. Suicide-by-cop incidents are usually impulsive, and individuals who commit suicide this way are oftentimes impulsive by nature. Record checks on such individuals may reveal arrests for assaultive behavior, multiple speeding citations, involvement in disturbances, excessive numbers of parking tickets on file, and other indicators of impulsive behavior.

Some people consider suicide to be an act of cowardice. The person intent on committing suicide may consider suicide by cop to be more acceptable. Also, a person might want to “go out big,” and certainly being involved in a violent altercation with police would draw attention. Many times, suicidal individuals escalate situations so that police have little option but to kill them. Escalating behaviors may include killing an officer, firing a weapon, or making threatening movements toward the police, bystanders, or hostages. A suicidal person who refuses to follow orders, makes attempts to escalate the situation, and makes no attempt to escape, surrender, or retreat suggests a person intent on suicide by cop.

There are many documented cases of this behavior. In one case, a woman called police to her home for assistance. When the two officers arrived, she pointed a shotgun at them. They shot and killed her. Later, it was determined that the shotgun was not loaded, and a suicide letter was found in her residence. It was obvious that her intent was to provoke the officers into killing her. In another case, officers responded to a call of a domestic disturbance. When officers arrived, a male subject who had been involved in the disturbance pointed a gun at the officers. He was shot and killed by the officers. Later, neighbors stated that the man had talked about how he intended to force officers to kill him.

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