Police stress is a well known problem among law enforcement officers. It is the leading cause of suicide, divorce, and domestic violence among law enforcement officers. In this paper I will discuss the issues in detail and also find out what the agencies are doing to prevent these devastating issues. A police officer has a lot of power and authority in our society, and responsibilities. They are responsible for keeping the peace and protecting the public from criminals and they are usually one of the first ones to respond when someone need help. They are the ones that determine if a person goes to jail or not, or who’s at fault during disputes or accidents. Police officers today face many serious problems; they have one of the highest suicide rates in the nation, a high divorce rate, and about second in the nation in alcoholism, about twice as often as the general population. 
Suicide is the second-highest cause of death among Buffalo police officers behind fatal diseases, and matches suicide rates in other big-city police departments, according to a University at Buffalo study. “Officers were 8.6 times more likely to die from suicide than at the hands of another person, and they took their lives twice as often as other city workers, the study found” (Lou Michel, 2009) Police Supervisors are not always trained to recognize the symptoms of stress, or if they are, they do not take appropriate action. Consequently, many of the ills associated with law enforcement such as alcohol abuse and marital conflict, fester until the results include physical illness, depression, domestic violence, and suicide. Although most departments provide officers with communications equipment, weapons, vehicles, and bullet resistant vests, “we have not yet devised training programs that are capable of bullet-proofing the mind." (Judith A. Waters, 2009) Police departments tend to deny the very existence of psychological factors. Due to misreporting, however, the present statistics underestimate the scope of the problem.
Suicide is the second-highest cause of death among Buffalo police officers behind fatal diseases, and matches suicide rates in other big-city police departments, according to a University at Buffalo study. “Officers were 8.6 times more likely to die from suicide than at the hands of another person, and they took their lives twice as often as other city workers, the study found” (Lou Michel, 2009) Police Supervisors are not always trained to recognize the symptoms of stress, or if they are, they do not take appropriate action. Consequently, many of the ills associated with law enforcement such as alcohol abuse and marital conflict, fester until the results include physical illness, depression, domestic violence, and suicide. Although most departments provide officers with communications equipment, weapons, vehicles, and bullet resistant vests, “we have not yet devised training programs that are capable of bullet-proofing the mind." (Judith A. Waters, 2009) Police departments tend to deny the very existence of psychological factors. Due to misreporting, however, the present statistics underestimate the scope of the problem.
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