Chicago police union dedicates memorial to officers who have died by suicide

Outside the entrance of the Fraternal Order of Police offices in the West Loop sits a large stone slab, at least 6 feet by 6 feet, that lists the names of Chicago police officers who died in the line of duty.

On Friday, dozens of officers, members of police families, friends and elected officials gathered to dedicate a companion memorial believed to be among the first of its kind: one to remember officers who have died by suicide. The commemoration came on the first day of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and at a time when the Chicago Police Department has been affected by such losses.

One of those to attend was Margaret Dougherty. Her husband, Sgt. Edward Dougherty, spent more than 20 years with the CPD, mostly in the Chicago Lawn District on the Southwest Side, before he died by suicide in March 2022.

“I think the thing we want most is for our loved ones to be remembered,” Margaret Dougherty said after the ceremony. “Something like this, just the acknowledgment and the love that they’re showing, it just helps to keep the memory alive.”

Edward Dougherty is one of more than a dozen CPD officers who have died by suicide since 2018. The year prior, the U.S. Department of Justice found that Chicago police officers had a 60% higher suicide rate than other police departments across the country.

CPD suicides will sometimes occur in clusters. During the summer of 2022, three Chicago police officers died by suicide within a month. Last December, three more died by suicide in a seven-day span.

In recent years the Police Department has sought to expand its employee assistance program to aid officers who may be in crisis. There are currently 18 clinicians working in patrol districts across the city, and two more counseling centers for officers were recently opened on the North and South sides.

Mayor Brandon Johnson acknowledged the pressures and stresses of policing, and he pledged to support officers who may be struggling.

“When I think about law enforcement and what we have, historically, asked law enforcement to do, I think about what it means to have a servant’s heart and how much pressure we apply to law enforcement every single day,” Johnson said. “Know that as mayor of the city of Chicago I am committed to making sure that the hearts that serve the city of Chicago — and that’s our Police Department — will have someone in office that will do everything in my power to work with you, to make sure that the servants’ hearts of our police department are being treated.”

Rabbi Moshe Wolf told those in attendance that death by suicide is akin to “cancer of the heart.”’

“One of the antidotes to that is (to) let them know they are not alone,” said Wolf, a CPD chaplain who often visits officers at district stations to offer both counsel and Tootsie Rolls or other candies. “If you see they’re going through hard times, the biggest thing you can tell them is to let them know they’re not alone.”

FOP President John Catanzara said the idea for an officer suicide memorial was birthed earlier this year. With his voice slightly cracking, Catanzara disclosed that he nearly attempted suicide in 2008, and he urged any officers in crisis to reach out to the union for assistance.

“This department, probably more than any other department in this country, has had this cancer of the heart in record numbers,” Catanzara said. “I firmly believe talking about it is the best medicine for anybody — not only the family members that are left behind, but any officers that are struggling — to show them that talking about it might just save your life or someone that you know, and you might not even realize you saved them.”

Larry Snelling, CPD’s chief of counterterrorism, whom Johnson has nominated to become the next superintendent, called on officers to make a deliberate effort to offer help to their colleagues.

“We have got to reach out to each other, we have got to take care of each other,” Snelling said. “It’s not a weakness to suffer. The weakness comes when we don’t reach out for that help. The weakness comes in others when you see someone in need and you’re not reaching out to help them.”

The Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, a resource for those who are struggling, can be contacted by dialing 988.