Police Homicide-Suicide in Relation to Domestic Violence (From Suicide and Law Enforcement, P 357-363, 2001, Donald C. Sheehan and Janet I. Warren, eds. -- See NCJ-193528)

• NCJ Number: 193560
• Author(s): Eleanor Pam
• Date Published: 2001
• Length: 7 pages
• Sale Source: US Dept of Justice
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Issue Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: A paper submitted to the Suicide and Law Enforcement Conference, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA, September 1999.

Annotation

This article analyzes police homicides-suicides (killing of another followed by the perpetrator's suicide) in the context of domestic violence.

Abstract

Studies have shown that the estimated incidence of domestic violence among police officers (25-40 percent) is significantly higher than in the general population (16 percent). Aggressive personalities, many of whom can be found in the law enforcement profession, are resistant to change or alternative approaches and suggestions; they are also inclined to alcohol abuse, which increases disinhibition and the likelihood of violence, suicide, or homicide-suicide. Aggressive coping styles, which are valued in the police subculture, can lead to abusive patterns in a marital relationship due to efforts to control one's spouse and enforce one's will by violent means. Police officers also have easy access to a gun, which becomes the ultimate instrument for controlling and imposing their will in a situation of conflict. Thus, aggression/impulsivity, stress, access to weapons, and concurrent alcohol/substance abuse -- all of which are found in disproportionate levels in the police profession -- place police officers at a high risk for domestic violence and associated homicide-suicide. There are clues and indicators that make interventions possible. Police supervisors should be trained and vigilant in identifying warning signs in officers that warrant an appropriate intervention.