SUICIDE PROTOCOLS

I get inquiries on a regular basis from agencies that have experienced the suicide of an officer. They want to know if they should have an honors ceremony and a traditional police funeral service. My answer is always, yes!

Suicide is not a crime. Therefore no officer should be denied the traditional police funeral services and honors ceremony associated with the death of any active duty officer. As long as no criminal activity is associated with the suicide death then there should be no restrictions.

I have helped families bury their spouses or sons who were involved in a murder suicide or being investigated for a felony crime and committed suicide. There were no traditional police funeral services or honors ceremony. The families I dealt with were always understanding. Not pleased,or necessarily accepting of the decision to restrict the ceremonies and honors provided, but understanding.

I began managing police funerals in early 1992 and at that time on my agency honors ceremonies were not authorized for officers who committed suicide.But at that time society looked at suicide a lot differently than they do now. It was deemed to be a weakness of character and it tarnished the badge.By the end of 1992 my agency policy had changed.

We started having traditional police funeral services and honors ceremonies. Not everyone agreed and there were heated discussions amongst the funeral planning team members, honor guard members, and even chaplains. But the emphasis needed to be on the deceased officer’s life and career, not on their manner of death.Funerals are for the living.

I still hear a lot of rhetoric about how having a police funeral and honors ceremony will encourage those contemplating suicide to follow through with their plans because their families and friends will be pleased and think well of them. Yet, there is no information that supports this fear and shows how not having services and ceremonies discourages people from committing suicide.

Nor is there any information on if having a police funeral and honors ceremony contributes to officers committing suicide. I’m not an expert on suicide prevention, I manage police funerals. I think that officer’s who commit suicide should be afforded every service and ceremony the same as any other active duty officer who dies from an illness.

The chief makes the decision to permit a traditional police funeral and honors ceremony or not too. Chiefs should make a policy decision now that when an officer commits suicide, and no criminal activity or serious misconduct issues are involved, that they will receive a traditional police funeral and honors ceremony. Waiting to make a decision until an incident occurs only complicates the decision making process and creates an emotionally charged environment that needs to be resolved in a short amount of time.

John Cooley

PoliceFunerals.com