خودکشی به روش پلیس: تیراندازی پلیس به عنوان یک روش خودآسیبی

Abstract Suicide by Cop (SbC) incidents, police-related deaths that could be considered suicides due to the subject's precipitated actions that demonstrate suicidal motivations through words or behavior are difficult to classify. The subjects’ intent is not understood, and risk factors for SbC incidents include the complication of others’ interactions. The current study advances a set of indicators that help classify police shootings that could be considered SbC. Using a modification of the decision tree developed by Best, Quigley, & Bailey (2004) to assess suicidal intentions of police shootings through observable acts, the current study compares cases classified as self-inflicted suicide or suicide attempts with those classified as SbC cases in the Hostage Barricade Data System (HOBAS). Overall the model increased the percentage of cases correctly predicted to 97.9 percent, 16.9 percent beyond chance. The primary indicators are significant. Other historical or situational variables did not improve the odds of predicting the SbC versus self-inflicted suicides.

Introduction Suicide is recognized as a nation-wide lethal tragedy with more than 33,000 reported deaths and about 400,000 self-inflicted injuries treated annually (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2007). Cause of death and intent is determined by coroners or medical examiners, whose credentials vary, and whose decisions are subject to error (Drylie, 2006 and Jobes et al., 1991). The criteria of proof of suicide, or self-inflicted death, are likely to exclude a number of actual suicides by labeling them as accidents or police-involved shootings. It is even more difficult to get an accurate figure on attempted suicides. Figures for attempted suicides usually come from self-report information in medical settings or police reports. The act or attempt of suicide encompasses more than the individual. Family members agonize over what they did wrong and/or why their loved one felt the need to cope with life stresses by death. When the individual involves the police by provoking officers to shoot, then a larger circle of highly emotional people are involved reviewing, judging, condemning, and redressing. Often the criticism is directed toward the officer rather than the subject, and the probability that civil action will be taken against the police agency and the individual officer increases (Flynn & Homant, 2000). Police officers’ first duty is to protect life; so shooting a citizen, even when legally justified, places a heavy emotional toll on individual officers and their departments (Klinger, 2001 and McKenzie, 2006). In an effort to standardize the criteria used to conduct medicolegal investigations and suicide certification, the Centers for Disease Control convened a group of experts (Rosenberg, Davidson & Smith, 1988). Input from these experts and related organizations such as American Association of Suicidology, National Association of Medical Examiners, and American Academy of Forensic Sciences resulted in the Operational Criteria for the Determination of Suicide (OCDS). The 22 criteria of the OCDS revolved around intent and evidence of self-infliction to distinguish suicide from accidental deaths. Additional studies continue to increase OCDS validity and reliability (Jobes et al., 1991). It is not surprising that efforts to examine intent are difficult given the complexities of suicide. Much of the research on intent relies on self-report of suicide attempters or the comparison of individual characteristics among those individuals who commit suicide and other populations (Brezo et al., 2007, Brown et al., 2005, Forman et al., 2004, Fushimi et al., 2006, Jollant et al., 2005, Keilp et al., 2006, Wyder and DeLeo, 2007 and Zalsman et al., 2006). In the instances of police-involved shootings that might be considered subject-precipitated, the criterion of self-infliction vanishes, so the actions by the subjects must be carefully analyzed to assess the possibility of the subjects’ intent to die. Suicide by Cop (SbC) incidents, police shootings that could be considered suicides due to the subject's precipitated actions that demonstrate suicidal motivations through words or behavior (Homant and Kennedy, 2000, Hutson et al., 1998, Lord, 2000, Lord, 2004 and Parent and Verdun-Jones, 1998), are difficult to classify because they involve many of the complexities surrounding the study of suicide including no living subjects. When there are living subjects because attempts of self-inflicted and SbC suicides are interrupted, intent possibly can be examined. The motivations of the subject's actions are often complex and not thoroughly understood, and the risk factors for SbC incidents must include the additional complication of at least one other person's interaction with the subject. Best, Quigley, and Bailey (2004) attempt to assess the suicidal intention of police shootings classified as SbC through observable acts revealed by a decision tree composed of nine indicators. Using a modification of Best and colleagues’ decision tree on cases from the Hostage Barricade Data System (HOBAS) of the FBI Crisis Negotiation National Data, the current study examines the following research questions: 1. Do individuals who use self-infliction to attempt or complete suicide differ personally and historically from those who attempt or complete suicide by inducing police officers to shoot them? 2. Do the primary, secondary, rational thought and minimal indicators of the decision tree significantly discriminate between self-inflicted suicides or suicide attempts and SbC (completed or attempted) subjects?

Findings Personal and historical individual characteristics Subjects’ personal characteristics such as gender, race, age, education, marital status, and employment were included in the data base. There were no significant differences among the personal characteristics of the subjects. For both self-inflicted suicidal and SbC subjects, White, middle-aged, unemployed, high-school educated, and single males were more likely to come to the attention of the police in their attempts or successful completion of suicide. The data base also included information about the subject's history of mental illness treatment, prior suicide attempts, criminal history, and drug addiction. Backgrounds of criminal history and drug abuse were not significantly different between the two groups; however, previous suicide attempts and mental illness treatment differed significantly. While a higher percentage of self-inflicted suicide subjects had one previous suicide attempt, SbC subjects were more likely to have attempted suicide multiple times. Also, although both groups had similar backgrounds in outpatient counseling, self-inflicted suicide subjects were more likely to have a history of mental hospital commitments. Characteristics related to the individual during the incident included intoxication, criminal act as part of the situation, a precipitating crisis or domestic dispute, weapon used and refusal to surrender. While there was not a significant difference between the two groups as far as intoxication or a precipitating crisis, a criminal act as part of the incident, the weapon used, and surrender to police were significantly different. SbC subjects were more likely to have committed a criminal act immediately before the incident, more likely to possess a gun, and less likely to surrender to police than self-inflicted suicide subjects. About one-third of the self-inflicted suicides did not have a weapon at all. There was a significant difference in the outcome of the incident also. The majority of self-inflicted suicides could be defined as “attempts” because they resulted in no injury. On the other hand, outcome for SbC subjects were bimodal with about equal percentages split between no injury and death (Table 2).