After years of mounting tragedies and stalled legislative efforts, New York lawmakers have passed a “game changing” bill aimed at tackling the growing mental health crisis among law enforcement officers.
In a rare show of bipartisan unity, the bill, introduced in 2019 by Long Island Assemblywoman Judy Griffin and championed by Nassau PBA President Tommy Shevlin, unanimously passed both chambers of the state legislature.
The Lt. Joseph Banish Mental Health Act — named after a State Trooper who killed himself — aims to combat police suicides by establishing a new statewide counseling program that creates a confidential, peer-to-peer support network of trained officers to help their peers before it’s too late.
“This is a game changer in our battle to stop this epidemic of police suicides and to allow us to get the help we need,” Shevlin told The Post. “This legislation will save lives.
The quiet epidemic has hit Long Island particularly hard, with more than half of the state’s nine confirmed police suicides so far this year happening in Nassau County, according to Shevlin and Blue H.E.L.P., a nonprofit that tracks law enforcement suicides across the US.
Shevlin explained that this legislation works similarly to Alcoholics Anonymous — giving struggling officers a peer support system with fellow cops, trained in mental health support, to talk to in confidence without fear of judgment, stigma or career repercussions.
He said having this support system readily available will help destigmatize the conversation of mental health in law enforcement, improve home life for struggling cops and even improve relations between officers and the communities they serve.
“When we’re at work, we’re able to put on a mask, and we’re able to do our job. But when we go home, that’s when the mask comes off and our families are the ones who suffer,” Shevlin said.
“Police officers deserve it, our families deserve it, and the communities we serve deserve to have healthy and happy police officers out there — it’s a better product out on the street when their mind is clear and they’re not struggling,” he added.
Just last month, the seventh officer of the year died by suicide in New York — an unidentified retired NYPD officer who had gone to Lido Beach, where he watched the sunrise as he took his own life in his car.
Since that suicide in May, two more officers have taken their lives throughout the state, bringing the total to nine so far this year, and putting New York on track to nearly double last year’s total of 13 police suicides if the current pace continues.
Although this is a great first step, Shevlin told The Post the battle for greater mental health resources is just beginning.
“I was crying when I watched them pass the bill because I know firsthand that this will save lives,” he said. “Finally, people are listening and we have to continue that — not just in the police but for all first responders and the community.”
