By Scott A. Coffina
Editor’s note: Suicidal thoughts and behaviors can be reduced. If you are in crisis, call the National 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 9-8-8 or visiting 988lifeline.org.
During National Police Week, we honor fallen officers throughout the country, and thank our nation’s finest for their service to our communities.
In Burlington County, where I was privileged to serve as County Prosecutor from 2017-2022, Police Week is shadowed with remembrance of two well-respected law enforcement officers who took their own lives around this same time in recent years.
NJ.com and The Star-Ledger recently published the special report “Suffering in silence” on the ongoing epidemic of police officer suicide, noting that 40 cops died by their own hand in the Garden State between 2018 through 2024. The report suggests the actual number is higher. The New York Times Magazine also published a troubling long-form piece “Why Do More Police Officers Die by Suicide Than in the Line of Duty?”
The New Jersey number stunned me, as did some of the comments in the series from law enforcement officers indicating that officer wellness programs are not meeting their mission, and the suggestion that “police leadership” tends to root out officers with mental health issues rather than getting them help. I had hoped we were past this, especially here in New Jersey.
In 2019, New Jersey launched a groundbreaking Law Enforcement Resiliency Program. This program originated in Burlington County, after several suicides caused concerned officers to find a way to support officers in crisis.
This work was far along when I arrived at the Prosecutor’s Office and the “pitch” made perfect sense to me: why spend all this time and money investing in the physical safety and training of our police officers, if it all gets wasted when an officer takes themself out of commission due to unresolved mental health issues?
The most extreme example of this, of course, is officer suicide, but an officer struggling with their mental health may also have negative encounters with the public, disciplinary problems, or impaired judgment that could put themselves, fellow officers, or members of the public in jeopardy.
It was easy to be convinced of the benefits of a genuine investment in mental health. Police officers are entrusted with enormous authority, including the power to arrest and to use deadly force when necessary. We want our cops at the top of their game.
Gurbir Grewal, New Jersey’s attorney general at the time, also was easily convinced. On Aug. 6, 2019, Grewal issued a Law Enforcement Directive Promoting Law Enforcement Resiliency, establishing a statewide program, and requiring every law enforcement agency in the State to identify a Resiliency Program Officer (RPO). The RPOs would make themselves available to any officer in their agency or throughout the State for assistance and information about counseling and other support programs.
New Jersey’s Resiliency Program, which originated in the U.S. military and was adapted to the needs of law enforcement, got off to a great start, with many enthusiastic officers stepping forward to be their agency’s initial RPO. When I left office, there had been hundreds, if not thousands, of calls from officers to RPOs seeking help.
I know of several officers in Burlington County alone whose careers were salvaged because the Resiliency Program afforded them the opportunity to step back, get well, and continue thriving in their careers.
Two of the most important ingredients for the Resiliency Program’s success are:
1. Compassionate, engaged leaders that build trust in the program by making sure that its promise of true support for officers who seek help is fulfilled.
2. A pipeline of motivated rank-and-file officers to keep the program vibrant as the initial RPOs retire or relinquish that role.
The NJ.com series raises important questions:
- Do we still have those ingredients? The program’s initial Chief Resiliency Officers in the Attorney General’s Office were pioneers in establishing the program who have since retired; there is an ongoing hiring process to fill that position. There is also frequent turnover among police chiefs and command staff due to retirements.
- Is it time for a refresh? Most provisions of the 2019 Law Enforcement Directive concerned standing up the Resiliency Program, and the initial appointment and training of RPOs, not its ongoing operation.
Six years on, with evidence that mental wellness still hasn’t taken its rightful place as a top priority alongside physical safety, the Attorney General’s Office ought to commission an unflinching study of the Resiliency Program.
Task forces may be where good ideas go to die, but it would be essential to have all the key stakeholders at the table, including the Attorney General’s Office; police chiefs; the New Jersey State Police; the PBA, FOP, and State Troopers Fellowship Association; rank-and-file officers; current RPOs; police support groups like Cop2Cop; families of officers who died by suicide; therapists; and other experts in police resiliency.
Among the topics this proposed task force might study would include:
- Trends in utilization of RPOs by officers throughout New Jersey
- Current awareness of the Resiliency Program within our State’s law enforcement agencies
- Whether new RPOs are getting the training necessary for them to be an effective resource for their law enforcement brothers and sisters
- Whether police leadership continues to be well-informed and supportive of the program, to ensure that officers feel comfortable (or at least are not discouraged from) coming forward when they need help
- Whether available resources are updated, adequate, and capable of meeting officers’ needs
- What obstacles exist for officers to get help through the Resiliency Program
- To what extent officers who utilize the Resiliency Program experience negative consequences for the continuation or advancement of their careers
- Best practices in law enforcement wellness utilized in other states
Police Week includes ceremonies throughout our State and nation where law enforcement and political leaders remember those lost in service to our communities.
If New Jersey’s leaders truly want to honor their sacrifice, they should recommit themselves to supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of those officers carrying forward that legacy of service today.
Revisiting our Resiliency Program to ensure it remains vibrant and at the forefront of officer wellness initiatives throughout the country would be a great start.
Calling your elected representative in the state Assembly or Senate is the most effective way to influence policy. To find your state Assemblymember and Senator to voice your position, go to the New Jersey Legislature website’s Legislative Roster.
Scott A. Coffina leads Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti’s New Jersey office, specializing in white collar criminal and civil defense, internal investigations, and crisis management.