Steve Marcus

Sheriff Kevin McMahill responds to a question about the Oct. 1, 2017 mass shooting during an interview at Metro Police Headquarters Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023.

By Casey Harrison (contact)

Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023 | 2 a.m.

Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill had just returned from seeing a show on the Las Vegas Strip with his family on Oct. 1, 2017, when the flood of phone calls began.

Metro Police dispatchers were inundated with calls starting about 10 p.m. from people reporting gunfire on the Strip. There were reports of dead and injured people up and down the casino-lined Las Vegas Boulevard.

McMahill, then undersheriff, and other top Metro brass were convinced Las Vegas was under a coordinated terrorist attack.

It was not until hours later that they would realize it was the work of a single gunman firing from the Mandalay Bay hotel tower into a crowd of some 22,000 people at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival below.

The unprecedented attack led to the deaths of 60 people. More than 400 were wounded by the gunfire, and over 400 others were hurt in the ensuing panic.

“We literally believed we were under attack for about a solid three hours into that event,” McMahill recalled. “You gotta imagine — 22,000 people ran in every direction, right away from where we were having reports of multiple shooters, elevated shooters.”

Virtually every officer, on-duty or not, in Metro’s force of 3,000 responded to what would be the largest mass shooting in U.S. history.

It ended when the gunman killed himself as police closed in. No motive was ever officially established.

“Everything was just pure chaos,” McMahill recalled. “Fire trucks that were responding to the scene had to stop, because how do they go past this person who has a sucking chest wound or a head wound, to go to the scene when someone is in dire need right now?

“All our resources that were coming in were getting stopped, and we could never get to where we really wanted to be.”

Amid the mayhem, McMahill, the top deputy under then-sheriff Joe Lombardo, decided to send groups of 25 officers to each casino along the Strip and downtown. It was outside normal protocol of establishing a single command center.

Still believing a terrorist attack might be underway, McMahill hoped the small teams could clear each building of potential shooters, get valid reports of how many people were injured and report back when the coast was clear.

“It’s a heavy burden,” McMahill said. “I’m getting ready to deploy these officers into what I think are multiple active assailant situations. And I’m trying to figure out in my mind if that’s the right thing to do or not.”

Eventually, as officers reported back and more information came in, a clearer picture of what was happening began to emerge.

“I really didn’t think about it that much while I was doing it, because I knew I needed to get people to where they were, and it was taking way too long for me to get those questions answered,” McMahill said. “I went outside the norms, and I’m glad I did it. It was the right thing to do.”

Going all in on mental health

Less than a year into his tenure as sheriff and nearly six years after the attack, McMahill has made the mental health and well-being of officers a top priority.

To combat post-traumatic stress and other issues officers face, Metro is teaming with other agencies to establish a wellness center open to all first responders in Southern Nevada.

Studies have found first responders and emergency dispatchers suffer depression and alcoholism at rates disproportionately higher than the general population.

“While we were taught to deal with it in my generation … it just doesn’t work,” said McMahill, who was elected sheriff and took over in January, after Lombardo became governor.

“That’s evidenced by the fact that we have higher rates of suicide, alcoholism, divorce,” McMahill said. “So I just felt like it was time for law enforcement to be bold and to have a real conversation about the fact that this job impacts us in ways that are so negative.”

The goal is to streamline access to services such as psychotherapy, nutritional guidance and financial planning.

“I believe in my heart of hearts that if we take care of our first responders better than we ever have, they’re going to take care of this community better than they ever have,” McMahill said.

With Metro’s Wellness Bureau established, McMahill’s larger ambition is to create a Southern Nevada First Responder Wellness Center.

“Our hope is that everyone in some way, shape or form will participate in this huge project, which is so important to our community,” said James Kilber, Metro’s chief administrative officer.

“The first phase we’re doing is mental health, but down the road, the other phases that we’ve mapped out already are physical fitness and health and wellness, nutritional health, family health as far as child care and daycare, financial health, spiritual health and training, education, career development and mentoring.”

Metro has been soliciting donations for the project, but officials might seek funding at the city, county and state levels.

“We’re at a very crucial part right now,” Kliber said. “These different entities need to step up and say, ‘Here’s how we’re going to fund this,’ and go to their respective people to ask for the money.”

McMahill says he’s hired two clinical social workers to complement Metro’s employee peer assistance program. He has plans to hire three more social workers and a doctor to act as the director of the bureau, he said.

Under McMahill, Metro has made it a condition of employment for new officers to undergo periodic mental health counseling “so we’ll eventually get to a place where everybody will have it.”

The sheriff has also invited other Clark County police and fire agencies to pool resources. The response has been well-received, he said.

Las Vegas Fire & Rescue Chief Fernando Gray said there have been several meetings with the sheriff and other elected officials. “What we’re looking for is just a collaborative approach to make sure that our responders, both police and fire, are taken care of,” he said.

It’s only been within the past few years that agencies have really started to emphasize the importance of mental health, said Jeff Dill, a retired firefighter and founder of the North Las Vegas-based Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance. The nonprofit group helps firefighters in mental crisis.

Dill is also a member of the Las Vegas Fire & Rescue peer support team that works with firefighters after traumatic responses.

Dill, a licensed counselor, said it’s not unusual for first responders to develop forms of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Sufferers can relive an especially traumatic event through flashbacks caused by certain triggers, such as loud noises like gunshots.

Another issue is cumulative trauma, which adds up over months or years of responding to gruesome scenes, be it a house fire or fatal wreck. It can be exacerbated by large-scale events like the Oct. 1 mass shooting.

But perhaps an even larger threat is a relatively new concept called moral injury or callbacks to actions that conflict with a person’s moral compass, officials said.

The problem can weigh on a person who is reluctant to open up people who aren’t first responders, causing personal relationships to deteriorate.

“That’s where we see a lot of our people struggling,” Dill said. “So, we’re really looking at everything overall, and that means we start at our academies. We’re training our counselors and chaplains, we’re educating our family members, we’re writing guidelines and policies — all the way up through retirement. Because here in Las Vegas, we want people to have a great career, but we want you to have an even better retirement.”

Crystal Patterson, the peer support coordinator at the North Las Vegas Police Department, has also been attending those meetings led by McMahill to get the wellness center off the ground.

She leads a team of eight people who offer support to department employees, from picking up their children from school to delivering snacks while officers are out in the field.

Agencies across the valley have had peer assistance programs for several years. But what McMahill has excelled at, in establishing Metro’s Wellness Bureau, is training clinicians to understand the life of a first responder so it’s easier for police officers, firefighters and medics to open up to them about the ups and downs of the job, Patterson said.

“We all love him for putting this together, and he’s done a lot since it was established,” Patterson said.

McMahill said he has taken advantage of therapy himself.

“Here I was thinking about this stuff, not sleeping, challenged in your own thought processes sometimes, and what you saw and what you felt, what you smelled,” he said. “It was time just to do something. And so that’s been a huge part of what I’ve decided to do here.”

McMahill said he wanted to address issues affecting the “heart, mind, body and soul” of each first responder in Southern Nevada. Those efforts have included the addition of Metro’s first emotional support dog, Jimmy.

“If you would have asked me 10 years ago, if I’d be buying a dog if I was a sheriff, I’d have laughed you out of the room,” McMahill said. “But that damn dog walks around here and people love that dog. … (It’s) just a little bit of comfort.”

McMahill emphasized the importance of building the Southern Nevada First Responder Wellness Center in a way that makes the rank-and-file genuinely believe departments have their backs.

“I’m a person that likes to get things done very rapidly,” McMahill said. “I have been intentionally, deliberately slow on what I’m doing because, if I don’t get it right and I lose the faith and the trust of the people that I lead, they’re never going to take advantage of this.”

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Prosecutors will not charge two Olathe police officers who shot and killed a 58-year-old man in June while he was experiencing a mental health crisis, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe announced Tuesday.

“It is my finding and determination that the two Olathe officers were justified in their use of force that resulted in the death of David Sweet,” Howe said during a press conference.

“These are all tragic situations, ones that no one wants to see happen, but the offices acted in accordance with state law and that is my findings here today.”

Prior to the press conference, Howe met with Sweet’s family and discussed his findings, providing them with additional information and answering their questions, he said.

The Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigation Team, which is comprised of members of several area law enforcement agencies, investigated the June shooting.

Around 5:43 p.m. on June 3, an Olathe police officer conducted a traffic stop near Santa Fe and Water streets, when Sweet pulled up in a gray Ford Fusion traveling in the opposite direction, Howe said.

Dash cam footage played at the news conference showed the Ford stop next to the officer’s vehicle, back up and then turn its wheels and drive toward the police car. The officer started to get out of his vehicle when Sweet drove away.

Howe said the officer called for another officer as he continued to work on traffic citations. He did not recognize Sweet from previous encounters. The officer said Sweet appeared to mouth some words to him during the interaction, but he couldn’t hear Sweet because their windows were up.

A few minutes later, dash cam footage showed Sweet pull up to the traffic stop again. Body cam footage showed the officer approach Sweet’s vehicle and ask if he can help him with anything. Sweet responded, “Yeah,” and unfolded a lock-blade knife.

While backing away, the officer told Sweet several times to stay in his car and not move.

The officers drew their guns, and Sweet’s car door opened. Sweet exited the vehicle and both officers instructed him to drop his knife and get on the ground.

Two shots were heard before the body camera footage stopped.

The officers fired a total of nine times at Sweet until he fell to the ground, Howe said. Eight bullets hit Sweet. He was pronounced dead at the scene as a result of his injuries.

Investigators recovered shell casings from the officer’s weapons and a folding knife found next to Sweet’s body from the scene.

When he fell, Sweet was about 9 to 10 feet away from the officers, Howe said. According to their training, officers consider a suspect a threat if they’re within a 21-foot distance.

In speaking with Sweet’s family and friends, Howe said it was clear Sweet had dealt with serious mental health issues for years.

“These officers did not know Mr. Sweet, did not know that he had potentially mental health issues,” he said.

Chief Mike Butaud said Olathe police officers are trained to help people experiencing mental health crises, and said both officers had completed crisis intervention training.

The situation, in which an unknown person approached officers during a traffic stop with a weapon, was unusual, forcing his officers to act by shooting Sweet, Butaud said

“Even the best trained and best prepared police departments cannot fully guarantee this type of outcome will never happen,” he said.

Quiet, kind man

Two friends who knew Sweet for decades from an addiction recovery group previously said he was a quiet and kind man, who dealt with mental health issues.

Olathe police fatally shot David Sweet earlier this month when he allegedly approached officers with a knife. Friends say he was a “sweetheart” who dealt with mental health issues.

One of the members, Edward Rogers, said Sweet had moments where his demeanor changed drastically, and he became anxious and paranoid. Someone who lived with Sweet in the early 2000s said at one point he made sure all the doors were locked because he thought animals were attacking the home.

But it had been some time since Sweet seemed that paranoid, Rogers said. In their conversations over the last decade, Sweet sometimes complained about family issues, but he appeared to be doing well.

Most of the time, he was “a really nice, harmless guy.”

“He tended to be, with me at least, almost over-complimentary,” Rogers said. “There was never any cross words between us or anything like that.”

Sweet’s killing was not the first time Olathe officers used deadly force against someone having a mental health crisis.

In several previous cases, the officers involved also did not face charges, after multijurisdictional investigations reviewed by the Johnson County prosecutor also determined those shootings were justified.

In May, prosecutors decided not to file charges against an Olathe officer who shot and killed 27-year-old Brandon Lynch on Dec. 31, while he was experiencing a mental health crisis. Lynch’s mom said Olathe police knew of her son’s history of schizophrenia and had helped him other times the family called officers to the house.

In 2018, Olathe officers shot and killed Ciara Howard after a standoff, despite being warned by their own SWAT teams that it would be risky to try to enter the house to arrest the mentally distressed woman, who had an outstanding warrant for walking away from the county’s adult residential center.

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The Government of Sweden aims to broaden the human resource base with experience of international work and work within the development sector, by giving younger, passionate, and educated people the opportunity to serve in the United Nations as junior professional officers (JPOs). In 2017 UNSSC and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) co-created a phenomenally successful learning programme designed to broaden JPOs’ leadership skills, improve their career prospects, and foster collaboration within the UN System.

“Sida finances programs for the Swedish JPOs to provide them with the keys to advance their careers towards serving in the UN system.”

– Thao Do Jorgensen, Programme Manager, Sida

This year 2023 UN Emerging Leadership and Career Booster for Swedish JPOs welcomed 29 mid-level Swedish JPOs representing 16 agencies and 22 duty stations to the Staff College campus in Turin, Italy.

Becoming a leader in the UN 

From the beginning of programme, participants were asked to reflect on the true meaning of being a leader in the UN, starting with their interactions with a former JPO (now Evaluation Specialist) and UNICEF Representative in El Salvador. They touched on the topics of mobility, accountability, and the values that guide the work of young professionals and leaders within the UN.   

To prompt dialogue and encourage reflection, the JPOs were tasked with conveying their stories and values through a Lego ® Serious Play, discussing their career journeys and giving advice to their peers with similar experiences. 

Mindfulness in the workplace and assessing DiSC profile results

Consistent self-care practice is one of the most effective ways working professionals can avoid or reduce the effects of burnout. Participants were provided with tips, advice and practical approaches to self-care as well as stress management techniques and tools to help them keep a healthy work-life balance.

Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Compliance (DiSC) Assessments help improve workplace productivity, teamwork, and communication. JPOs received feedback and guidance on how to optimize and benefit from the results of their assessments.

“Exchanging and learning from each other was the best part of this programme. We all face very similar challenges which were very powerful and useful to learn. This network will be extremely useful and important going forward.”

– Participant, Sida JPO Programme, 2023

Personal branding, acing interviews, and career trajectories 

Participants had the opportunity to learn how improve their personal branding and how to best showcase their skills or competencies in interviews. JPOs participants were also guided to develop their career timelines and vision for their future. They were asked to reflect on their purpose and priorities and draft a vision that reflected their values.

In a special session hosted by IOM’s Director of Human Resource Management, Michael Emery, JPOs gained insights on the latest developments in terms of UN career trends, news, and opportunities to help them effectively prepare and plan their career trajectories.

“Enjoyed the opportunity to network with peers and other JPOs present during the residential week. The most effective was the session on “Peers as Resources” as it gave us the opportunity to allocate time to listen to each other in a more structured way.”

– Participant, Sida JPO Programme, 2023

Next Steps

“This year marked seven years and the second blended edition of emerging leadership and career booster for Swedish Junior Professional Officers. This programme speaks very much to the UN System Staff College’s core mandate and mission. The collaboration and co-creation with Sida specifically amplifies it in a powerful way. Throughout our seventh-year collaboration with Sida on this programme, we have enjoyed accompanying the JPOs on this important learning journey. At UNSSC we help them become better leaders, find their career path in the UN and prepare for their next career move.”

– Aida Ghazaryan, Learning Portfolio Manager, UNSSC

It was a jam-packed programme full of fruitful learning for the Swedish JPOs, providing them with opportunities to connect with peers while learning from a host of qualified leaders both within and outside the United Nations.

The learning continues even though they have left Turin! Each JPO will benefit from bilateral sessions with leadership and career coaches to ensure they turn all the wisdom they received into action.

UNSSC is proud to have hosted this 2023 cohort of JPOs in collaboration Sida. Learn more about the 2023 UN Emerging Leadership and Career Booster for Swedish JPOs on social media! 

#SIDA2023 #UNSSC 

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On any given day, a police officer might find themselves responding to the worst day of someone’s life.

A traffic accident. A mass shooting. A domestic incident.

Depending on the call, the officer might be in danger, or find it necessary to use force, or be required to assume a different role, like a social worker, a guidance counselor or an impartial arbiter.

Regardless, when the officer responds, the physical and mental well-being of the victim is paramount. The same cannot always be said about the responding officer, whose own work-related trauma, stress and anxiety can often go unmentioned and ignored.

“Many years ago, before mental health came to the forefront of the conversation, it was just something officers dealt with in their own way,” Millcreek Police Department Chief Carter Mook said.

Erie Bureau of Police Chief Dan Spizarny said the police field used to be known for its heavy drinkers, a reputation he suggested came from officers coping with trauma without the proper resources to handle it.

“Things have changed,” he said, “and now trauma-informed care is recognized throughout the public safety field.”

Erie police and Erie County sheriff’s deputies patrol Erie’s Little Italy neighborhood in May 2016 under a federal grant program designed to curb crime and build police-community relationships in the neighborhood. A similar program is launching in a portion of Erie’s east side.

Compared to the general population, those in law enforcement have much higher rates of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, burnout and other anxiety-related mental health conditions, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

In addition to grueling, rotating shifts, sleep disruptions and staff shortages, officers bear witness to traumatic or violent events on a regular basis, all of which can have a significant impact on mental health.

Violence recently shook the police community with the death of Pennsylvania State Trooper Jacques “Jay” F. Rougeau Jr., a Corry native who was killed June 17 when a gunshot pierced through the windshield of his patrol car in Juniata County in central Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania State Troopers bring in the casket of Jacques Rougeau Jr. during funeral services for the fallen Trooper held June 27, 2023 at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center.

His funeral, which brought scores of troopers from across the state to the Bayfront Convention Center on June 27, was not just a display of trooper solidarity but a solemn reminder of the life-threatening risks inherent in police work.

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“(Rougeau) could have been any one of us,” said Pennsylvania State Police Corporal Nicholas Stolar of Erie, noting how Rougeau was killed driving on a rural road in Walker Township. “There’s nothing saying that someone can’t ambush us on any single call we go to.”

Pennsylvania State Police Captain Kirk Reese, commander of Troop E, which covers northwestern Pennsylvania, said that kind of pervasive threat of violence, coupled with police encounters with traumatic events, can “wear on you” over time.

He added, however, that troopers must try their best not to get overwhelmed by what they see on duty, insisting, “You can’t get stuck thinking about it because you can’t do your job.”

Erie County Sheriff Chris Campanelli followed suit, saying it takes a “different kind of person” to be in law enforcement.

“You have to have that ability to separate yourself from it,” he said, referring to the trauma and violence witnessed on duty. “It’s hard, I get it. But I think that’s exactly why not everyone can do this job. You need to be mentally and physically fit.”

While all the police leaders stressed the importance of training in preventing and addressing trauma and other mental health issues, they said their agencies do have options for employees seeking help.

Peer counselors, employee programs available to officers seeking help

The Pennsylvania State Police offers the Members Assistance Program, or MAP, composed of a 24/7 network of troopers trained to provide confidential peer-based assistance.

The program provides resource referrals, which could be a health professional, lawyer or financial counselor, and also offers training for family members to help them recognize symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions.

“MAP consists of seven full-time regional peer coordinators and approximately 91 peer contacts who serve in that capacity part-time,” said Pennsylvania State Police Lieutenant Adam Reed, director of communications at the State Police Harrisburg office.

“There are also 63 volunteer civilian chaplains who are part of the program. The peer coordinators and peer contacts receive continuing training relating to stress management, mental health and crisis intervention.”

Reed said MAP was formed in 1986 as one of the first programs of its kind to use “organized, confidential, peer assistance by, and for, its own personnel in law enforcement.”

“The law enforcement community across the U.S. faces more challenges than ever before as we strive to do our best to protect the public,” he said. “Programs like MAP are a great resource to assist personnel in their time of need.”

In similar fashion, the Millcreek Police Department also has peer support officers trained to offer counseling services to those experiencing problems, personally and professionally.

“I’ve seen homicides, suicides, traffic fatalities. None of it is easy, and we do talk amongst ourselves to try to relieve stress as best we can,” Mook said. “For the bulk of my career, we didn’t have peer support group services available. Now we do. And I’m seeing that our officers are taking advantage of it.”

Campanelli and Spizarny said members of their departments can take advantage of the employee assistance programs made available to all county and city government employees, respectively. The programs provide personal and work-related counseling.

Both men stated they hope to start an internal counseling group, with Campanelli focused on a peer group of deputies and Spizarny thinking of an in-house “crisis intervention team,” done in partnership with the Crisis Center at UPMC Western Behavioral Health at Safe Harbor.

Both men said the ideas are still in the works.

“I think that we’re sharing a lot more about trauma-informed care and that’s not only for the victim or the witnesses of crimes but also with the first responders and how they deal with trauma,” Spizarny said. “So, we’re getting better in looking out for our first responders.”

A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNRao.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie-area police reflect on mental health options for officers

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MARY. YEAH, MARIA, YOU KNOW, OFFICER TYLER SUTTON IS FOCUSING ON HIS THREE YOUNG CHILDREN TONIGHT, BUT HE ASKED HIS POLICE CHIEF TO HELP HIM SPREAD AWARENESS ABOUT POSTPARTUM MENTAL HEALTH. YOU KNOW, TWO WEEKS AGO, WE WERE CALLING HIM SAYING, CONGRATULATIONS AND PUTTING CARDS TOGETHER FOR HIM. AND NOW WE’RE PREPARING FOR A FUNERAL. CHIEF KEITH BOONE, WITH THE FAMILY’S PERMISSION, ENCOURAGING OTHERS NOT TO JUDGE, BUT TO LEARN ABOUT POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION. IT IS REAL. IT REQUIRES TREATMENT. AND FAMILY AND FRIENDS NEED TO BE VIGILANT FOR THE SIGNS. THAT IS THE MESSAGE HE’S TRYING TO CONVEY, THAT IF HIS STORY AND ARIANA’S STORY CAN HELP SAVE SOMEBODY ELSE, THEN THAT’S WHAT HE’S HOPING HE CAN ACCOMPLISH. ARIANNA SUTTON GAVE BIRTH TO TWINS TWO WEEKS AGO, NINE DAYS LATER, SHE TOOK HER OWN LIFE. HER CONDITION DETERIORATED. THAT QUICKLY. POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION IMPACTS ABOUT 1 IN 7 PEOPLE AND CAN SEEM AT FIRST LIKE BABY BLUE SYMPTOMS, WHICH MAY INCLUDE MOOD SWINGS, ANXIETY, SADNESS, FEELING OVERWHELMED, CRYING AND HAVING TROUBLE SLEEPING. BUT WITH POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION, THESE SYMPTOMS ARE MORE INTENSE AND LASTS LONGER AND MAY INTERFERE WITH THE MOTHER’S ABILITY TO CARE FOR HER BABY AND TO HANDLE DAILY TASKS. WE’RE TALKING SEVERE MOOD SWINGS, EXCESSIVE CRYING, DIFFICULTY BONDING WITH THE BABY, WITHDRAWING FROM FAMILY AND FRIENDS, AND FEELINGS OF HOPELESSNESS OR THOUGHTS OF HARMING YOURSELF. FAMILY MEMBERS NEED TO WATCH OUT FOR THESE SIGNS AND NOT HESITATE TO REACH OUT FOR PROFESSIONAL HELP. AS FOR THE SUTTONS FRIENDS HAVE ESTABLISHED A GOFUNDME PAGE AND ARE ASKING FOR PRAYERS. HE HAS A FOUR YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND TWO TWINS THAT WERE JUST BORN, AND HE’S GOT A LONG ROAD AHEAD OF HIM TO PUT THE PIECES BACK TOGETHER OF HIS LIFE. ARIANNA SUTTON WAS ALSO A DANCER AND CO-OWNER OF THE STAR LINE ACADEMY FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS IN STOUGHTON. HER FUNERAL WILL BE HELD TOMORROW. BURIAL WILL BE PRIVATE. WE ARE LIVE IN EASTON TONIGHT. I’M MARY SALADNA WKBW NEWSCENTER 5 MARY. IMPORTANT INFORMATION IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING, KNOW THAT HELP IS AVAILABLE. THE NATIONAL SUICIDE AND CRISIS LIFELINE IS RIGHT THERE ON YOUR SCREEN. YOU CAN CALL OR TEXT NINE,

Police raise awareness about postpartum depression after death of Easton officer’s wife

Updated: 11:30 PM EDT Jun 5, 2023

A police department in Massachusetts is raising awareness about postpartum depression on behalf of one of its officers, whose wife died by suicide nine days after giving birth to their twins.Ariana Sutton, of Norton, delivered a boy and a girl on May 22, but their early arrival brought unforeseen challenges that placed an immense strain on her mental health. On May 31, she sadly died by suicide at the age of 36.She is survived by her husband, Easton police Officer Tyler Sutton, their 4-year-old daughter, Melody, and their newborn twins, Everly and Rowan. “Two weeks ago, we were calling him saying, ‘Congratulations,’ and putting cards together for him. Now, we’re preparing for a funeral,” said Easton police Chief Keith Boone. “He’s got a long road ahead of him to put the pieces back together of his life.”Boone, with the permission of Ariana’s family, is speaking out about the tragedy and is encouraging others not to judge, but to learn about postpartum depression.Postpartum depression impacts about one in seven people and the symptoms can at first seem similar to the symptoms of “baby blues,” a list that includes mood swings, anxiety, sadness, feeling overwhelmed, crying and difficulty sleeping. The symptoms, however, are more intense and last longer with postpartum depression and may interfere with the mother’s ability to care for her child or children and handle daily tasks. Some examples of postpartum depression symptoms are severe mood swings, excessive crying, difficulty bonding with the baby, withdrawing from family and friends, and feelings of hopelessness or thoughts of self-harm.Boone said family members and friends of mothers need to watch out for signs of postpartum depression and not hesitate to reach out for professional help if they witness any.”If (Tyler’s) story and Ariana’s story can help save somebody else, then that’s what he’s hoping he can accomplish,” Boone said.Ariana Sutton was an Easton native and 2005 graduate of Oliver Ames High School. She received a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance education from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and became a member of the Impact Dance Company in Boston.She co-owned the Starline Academy for the Performing Arts in Stoughton for the past eight years with her sister, Rayna Flaherty, and was a member of the Greater Brockton Dance Teacher’s Association.A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Brockton. Visitation and burial will be private.In lieu of flowers, donations in Ariana’s memory may be made via GoFundMe. Click here to reach the GoFundMe page set up for Tyler Sutton and the couple’s three children. If you or someone you know needs help, you can talk with the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or sending a text message to 988, or you can chat online here.More mental health resources:

EASTON, Mass. —

A police department in Massachusetts is raising awareness about postpartum depression on behalf of one of its officers, whose wife died by suicide nine days after giving birth to their twins.

Ariana Sutton, of Norton, delivered a boy and a girl on May 22, but their early arrival brought unforeseen challenges that placed an immense strain on her mental health. On May 31, she sadly died by suicide at the age of 36.

She is survived by her husband, Easton police Officer Tyler Sutton, their 4-year-old daughter, Melody, and their newborn twins, Everly and Rowan.

“Two weeks ago, we were calling him saying, ‘Congratulations,’ and putting cards together for him. Now, we’re preparing for a funeral,” said Easton police Chief Keith Boone. “He’s got a long road ahead of him to put the pieces back together of his life.”

Boone, with the permission of Ariana’s family, is speaking out about the tragedy and is encouraging others not to judge, but to learn about postpartum depression.

Postpartum depression impacts about one in seven people and the symptoms can at first seem similar to the symptoms of “baby blues,” a list that includes mood swings, anxiety, sadness, feeling overwhelmed, crying and difficulty sleeping. The symptoms, however, are more intense and last longer with postpartum depression and may interfere with the mother’s ability to care for her child or children and handle daily tasks. Some examples of postpartum depression symptoms are severe mood swings, excessive crying, difficulty bonding with the baby, withdrawing from family and friends, and feelings of hopelessness or thoughts of self-harm.

Boone said family members and friends of mothers need to watch out for signs of postpartum depression and not hesitate to reach out for professional help if they witness any.

“If (Tyler’s) story and Ariana’s story can help save somebody else, then that’s what he’s hoping he can accomplish,” Boone said.

Sutton family

Ariana Sutton, 36, of Norton, Massachusetts, died May 31, 2023 after struggling with postpartum depression and committing suicide nine days after delivering twins.

Ariana Sutton was an Easton native and 2005 graduate of Oliver Ames High School. She received a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance education from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and became a member of the Impact Dance Company in Boston.

She co-owned the Starline Academy for the Performing Arts in Stoughton for the past eight years with her sister, Rayna Flaherty, and was a member of the Greater Brockton Dance Teacher’s Association.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Brockton. Visitation and burial will be private.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Ariana’s memory may be made via GoFundMe. Click here to reach the GoFundMe page set up for Tyler Sutton and the couple’s three children.

If you or someone you know needs help, you can talk with the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or sending a text message to 988, or you can chat online here.

More mental health resources:

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From September, police officers will only attend mental health 999 calls where there is an ‘immediate threat to life’.

The move has been described by a former inspector of constabulary as ‘potentially alarming’, while the Royal College of Psychiatrists have called the move ‘unhelpful’. The Met argues the move will free up officers who are being used more and more often as a first resort for people in a crisis.

The plans, which were first reported by The Guardian, were laid out in a letter written by Metropolitan’s police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to health and social care services in Greater London.

According to Rowley, it takes almost 23 hours on average from the point at which someone is detained under the Mental Health Act until they are handed into medical care. He also goes on to explain that his officers are spending more than 10,000 hours a month on ‘what is principally a health matter’.

Earlier in the year, Rowley told BBC Newsnight that the hours it takes policing mental health is equivalent to dealing with 500,000 victims of domestic abuse. In one example, Met officers spent 30 hours supervising one individual as they were unable to find space at a mental health unit.

‘This isn’t what [police officers] are trained to do, they’re the wrong people to be doing it, we’re letting vulnerable people down,’ he added.

With mental health services under funded, understaffed and over worked, it begs the question: who are you supposed to call?

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According to Zoe Billingham, who was previously Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue and is now chair of the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS mental health trust, believes other than the police force, there is simply no other agency to call, warning ‘there isn’t another agency to step in and fill the vacuum.’

While the announcement has been welcomed by some, and it’s widely understood that the police won’t withdraw completely, Ms Billingham has expressed doubt about whether the timeframe set by the Met is achievable and would be ‘very surprised’ if mental health trusts across London are able to get extra round-the-clock services staffed and working efficiently.

Dr Adrian James, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, told the BBC that the move is unhelpful. ‘We don’t have those resources at the current time,’ he said. ‘We also have a workforce crisis in the health service. We can’t just pluck new members of staff from nowhere. I think it’s too short a period of time. Sir Mark should look very closely at whether there is some flexibility around that.’

In 2020, Humberside police brought in a policy known as Right Care, Right Person (RCRP), that involves staff from the charity Mind dealing with calls in the police room. According to a report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Service, it saved over a thousand hours of police time per month. And this is what Rowley is hoping to introduce by the end of August.

‘It is important to stress the urgency of implementing RCRP in London,’ says Rowley. ‘We are failing them first by sending police officers, not medical professionals, to those in mental health crisis, and expecting them to do their best in circumstances where they are not the right people to be dealing with the patient.

‘We are failing Londoners a second time by taking large amounts of officer time away from preventing and solving crime, as well as dealing properly with victims, in order to fill gaps for others.’

Comment From MH’s Executive Editor, Robert Hicks

As someone who has had to deal with a mental health emergency, I can say first-hand that mental health services are struggling to deal with such situations – and that’s with police help. At weekends, you can be expected to be put on hold – I was number eight in the queue and had to wait almost an hour to speak to someone. While the mental health services undoubtedly work very hard, in my experience, they are being stretched beyond their capabilities. Mental health is a very serious matter both for the person who is experiencing it and those trying to care for that person. While the idea is right in principle, I’m sceptical this can be implemented by September.

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Robert Hicks is the Executive Editor at Men’s Health UK. A Sport Science graduate and author of three fitness books published by Bloomsbury, Robert has written numerous articles on health, fitness and nutrition and created several documentaries, most notably Britain’s Steroid Epidemic and The Faces of Attempted Suicide. Robert has been working at Men’s Health UK for seven years.   
 

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Officers who completed CIT training are, from left, Jonathan Potts of Lisbon Police Department, Alan Shaffer of Lisbon Police Department, Trevor O’Rourke of Lisbon Police Department, William Hewitt of Lisbon Police Department, Will Grodhaus of Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Brent Slider of Salem Police Department, Bryan Granchie of Columbiana Police Department, Keith Raffle of Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Justin Hays of Lisbon Police Department, Dakota Wetzel of St. Clair Township Police Department, George Anderson of St. Clair Township Police Department, Les Brode of Ohio State Highway Patrol, Samantha Collins of Salem Police Department, and Brenda Hamilton, a CCMHRSB Board member and family advocate who operates Nina’s Closet to provide resources for kinship families. (Submitted photo)

CIT is a 40-hour course, sponsored locally by the Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board with support from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, that teaches officers skills needed to more effectively respond to calls involving individuals with mental illness and/or substance use disorders. The class was hosted this year by the St. Clair Township Police Department and was held in the Township Administration Building’s Community Room.

The goals of the CIT program are:

— To improve safety during law enforcement encounters with people experiencing a mental health crisis, for everyone involved.

— To increase connections to effective and timely mental health services for people in mental health crisis.

Robert Sanchez received the CIT Officer of the Year Award for 2023. A deputy with the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Sanchez is also an EMS instructor and a paramedic working with Columbiana EMS and as Leetonia EMS chief. He is also a member of the First Responder Peer Team. (Submitted photo)

— To use law enforcement strategically during crisis situations – such as when there is an imminent threat to safety or a criminal concern – and increase the role of mental health professionals, peer support specialists, and other community supports.

— To reduce the trauma that people experience during a mental health crisis and thus contribute to their long-term recovery.

Throughout the last week, officers have learned more about mental illness and substance abuse, practiced de-escalation and active listening, learned more about topics such as use of force, civil commitments, officer self care, suicide prevention, geriatric issues, veteran concerns, domestic violence and protection orders, local drug trends, and youth trauma, and were given a wealth of information about local resources that are available.

Presenters included Maureen Waybright, Lori Colian and Jennifer Whitman of the Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board; Kelli Hephner of Heroes and Halos and the First Responder Wellness Coordinator; Tina Deal-Hendon of Children’s Services; Steve Ullom of Family and Children First Council; Chad Jakubowski, Jayne Gallagher, Jaimie Rice, Terrie Kyser and Belinda Puchajda of the Counseling Center; Amanda Kantaras and Miranda Abel of Family Recovery Center; Peer Supporters Jaime Urmson, Glen McMillin and Tawnia Jenkins; Amy Creaturo-Moore of Adult Protective Services; Brittany Tyler, Dakotah Sevek and Chris Talbert of Community Action Agency; Nicole Miller of New Day/On Demand Counseling; Vince Brancaccio of Help Network of Northeast Ohio; Erica Como of the Peer Resource and Recovery Center; Sgt. Brett Grabman of the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Team; Victim Advocate Elaine Kloss; Krista Peddicord and Bret Hartup of the Columbiana County Prosecutor’s Office; Tim Wires; Alex Amstutz, a peer supporter from the Veterans Administration; Cassandra Valentini of Direction Home of Eastern Ohio; and Mark Edwards and Rick Whitfield of Columbiana Police Department.

The 2023 CIT graduates include Jonathan Potts of Lisbon Police Department, Alan Shaffer of Lisbon Police Department, Trevor O’Rourke of Lisbon Police Department, William Hewitt of Lisbon Police Department, Will Grodhaus of Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Brent Slider of Salem Police Department, Bryan Granchie of Columbiana Police Department, Keith Raffle of Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Justin Hays of Lisbon Police Department, Dakota Wetzel of St. Clair Township Police Department, George Anderson of St. Clair Township Police Department, Les Brode of Ohio State Highway Patrol, and Samantha Collins of Salem Police Department. Brenda Hamilton, a CCMHRSB Board member and family advocate who operates Nina’s Closet to provide resources for kinship families, also completed the training.

CCMHRSB provides the CIT training to officers annually, free of charge, and a companion course is offered for dispatchers. This most recent class brings the total number of officers and dispatchers trained through the CCMHRSB program up to 100.

During the graduation luncheon, the CIT Officer of the Year award was presented to Robert Sanchez. A deputy with the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Sanchez is also an EMS instructor and a paramedic working with Columbiana EMS and as Leetonia EMS Chief. He is also a member of the First Responder Peer Team.

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