A police officer is in serious but stable condition after he apparently attempted to take his own life in a Bronx station house this morning, multiple police sources told Gothamist.
The officer was discovered with wounds to his head inside a police locker room in the 47th Precinct, a spokesperson for the NYPD confirmed. He was initially hospitalized in critical condition, but is now expected to survive, police said.
Officers responded to gunshots at the station house, which is located at Laconia Avenue and East 229th Street, shortly after 11 a.m.
The officer, who one police official said is in his second year on the force, was rushed to Jacobi Hospital. .
Two NYPD officers have already died by suicide so far this year. On Jan. 10, and again on Jan. 20, Commissioner Keechant Sewell announced on Twitter that the department was mourning the death of a member of service.
“You are never alone, help is always available,” she said in the tweets, adding that law enforcement members can text Blue to 741741 for help.
The NYPD does not regularly publish suicide data and did not immediately respond to a request for numbers. A Department of Investigation report found that in 2017 NYPD officers died by suicide at more than double the rate of the general New York City population. According to national data collected by the organization Blue H.E.L.P, an average of 140 to 160 members of law enforcement die by suicide across the country each year. That number spiked to nearly 200 in 2019 — and at least 10 in New York City, Gothamist reported at the time.
That same year, the NYPD hosted a symposium on law enforcement suicide prevention and took multiple steps to bolster resources for officer mental health, including creating a health and wellness section. That section offers peer counselors for both uniformed and civilian employees. It also offers yoga classes and holds a grief and bereavement group, among other resources. The department also refers officers to a volunteer support network called the Police Organization Providing Peer Assistance, also known as POPPA.
Philip Stinson, a policing expert at Bowling Green State University, said the “macho environment” in many police departments can make officers reluctant to ask for help. He said officers may also be afraid to admit that they’re struggling, out of fear that it could hurt their career. Instead, Stinson said, they may turn to alcohol and drug use, be violent at home or violate policy on the job.
“What we see time and again when officers are in trouble and commit suicide is that they simply have unmet mental health needs, and, for whatever reason, don’t get help,” he said.
Blue H.E.L.P. co-founder Karen Solomon said many departments have invested in more resources in recent years. But she said the next step is to make mental health discussions a more normal part of police culture.
“We have to allow first responders to seek help without penalizing them, and we need to share stories of success,” Solomon said. “And, at the end of the day, the departments can provide all of these resources and you implement wellness programs, but the officers themselves have to have the courage to take the step forward to seek help.”
If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone; remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt; and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.
This story has been updated with new information.
