Suicide by Cop Among Female Subjects in Officer-Involved Shooting Cases

• Autores: Kris Mohandie, J. Reid Meloy
• Localización: Journal of forensic sciences, ISSN-e 1556-4029, ISSN 0022-1198, Vol. 56, Nº. 3, 2011, págs. 664-668
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Keywords:forensic science;suicide;lethal force;law enforcement;suicide by cop;officer-involved shootings;gender and suicide Abstract: An analysis of suicide by cop (SBC) among female subjects in a large sample (n = 707) of officer-involved shootings (OIS) is reported. Women represented 3% of the total sample (n = 21) and 5% (n = 12) of the 256 SBC cases. Therefore, 57% of the women (n = 12) were classified as SBC, and 81% of the women (n = 17) behaviorally evidenced some suicidal motivation. The results underscore that when a female subject becomes involved in a situation leading to an OIS, there is a very high likelihood that she is motivated to be intentionally killed. She is almost guaranteed to have a diagnosed mental disorder, has been prescribed psychiatric medications, and is abusing a substance at the time, most likely alcohol. Nevertheless, she also poses a serious risk of injury to both police officers and civilians during the encounter and will possess a firearm half the time. The wish for suicide is often precipitated by serious relationship issues. Comparisons are made to the male subjects in our previous study.