“ Shoot me! Shoot me!” They did.
Thirty-seven-year-old Shaun Jeffery Christy was having a psychotic episode. Things were rapidly spinning out of control for him and he was desperately crying out for help. Concerned, well-meaning citizens signed his death warrant by calling the Durham Police Department to come to his aid. They came, they saw, and they murdered killed. Shaun did not stand a chance.
Law enforcement agencies across the Triangle had been alerted that an Orange County man was planning to harm himself when Durham police confronted the man in a shopping center parking lot Wednesday night, authorities said Thursday.
Shaun Jeffery Christy, 37, of Carrboro, was killed when he pointed a gun at Durham police at the New Hope Commons shopping center and the officers opened fire on him, police said.
The irony here is that the DPD prides itself on having one of the most progressive programs designed to prepared officers for just such an encounter. In fact, one of the two responding cops — Cpl. B. M. Glover and Officer G. F. Paschall — is reported to be the best-trained, most experienced officer they have in their department.
Two officers responded to the telephonic pleas for help from well-meaning bystanders. Two cops who should have provided a Bridge Over Troubled Water… two cops who could have been Angels instead became murderers killers.
What could they have done differently?
They were armed with the knowledge that Mr. Shaun suffered from mental illness. That he was suicidal. They knew. What was the strategy for de-escalation going in, I wonder? I’ve not been trained in the SOP for dealing with people in the throes of their psychosis, but even so, I’d have done the following:
- Employ a calm soothing voice and a non-threatening manner
- Park in such a way as to be able to use the squad car as a barrier
- Respect his space even as I try to get as to close to him as possible
- When he pointed the gun, simply retreat behind the car
But they — the concerned citizens — didn’t Call Me. They called the people who they were supposed to call… the ones who we should be able to trust to be The Do Right Women and The Do Right Men.
The Orange County Sheriff's Office said that anyone with a family member or friend suffering from a mental-health illness or is stuck in a domestic-violence situation can reach out to resources like law enforcement or places like the Compass Center, Club Nova, or Cardinal Innovations.
Or were they just trolling us?
I’ve scoured the internet for advice on how to best deal with the emotionally disturbed, and the best advice I see from experts is for first responders to remember the importance of empathy.
Remember that most disturbed people are afraid. They experience extreme fear because they do not understand their feelings and because they are not certain how others will treat them. When emotionally disturbed persons become aggressive, it is almost always because of fear. Therefore, officers should attempt to handle them in a calm, understanding, and humane way. This will often reassure the people that officers are there to help.
Mental Health Advocates report that “people with untreated mental illness are 16 times more likely to be killed by law enforcement.”
Numbering fewer than 1 in 50 U.S. adults, individuals with untreated severe mental illness are involved in at least 1 in 4 and as many as half of all fatal police shootings, the study reports.
A call that should have ended with a disturbed man getting the help he needed, instead ended with loved ones planning his funeral and a community traumatized. Did the cops even Think before going in? Did they plan to show even a little bit of Respect for Shaun and his particular circumstances?
Dear Shaun, you deserve so much better than you got. I’ll Say a Little Prayer for you and for your loved ones. Rest in Peace.
And Rest in Peace to the fierce civil rights icon herself, the original DIVA, Ms. Aretha Franklin. She Sends me.