Working in the criminal justice field can be extremely rewarding and can also bring many challenges. This section will discuss several occupational risks that can present themselves in this field. A professional working in this field must always be checking-in with one’s self to put healthy coping in place, evaluate boundaries with their work, and maintain relationships without people who are not directly tied to the criminal justice field. Occupational risks are common in several professions, for instance, a firefighter who must fight fires or a mail delivery driver who must deal with protective dogs, etc. Occupational risks can be present in many fields, it is important to be aware of the psychological risks associated with professionals in the criminal justice field.

10.5.1 Psychological Distress & Substance Use

Rates of alcohol and drug use among those who work in the criminal justice field can often go under-reported. Police and law enforcement professionals often undergo an extensive background check, random urine analysis, interview regarding someone’s history with substance use, which may also include a polygraph. Because there are such strict requirements to not use or abuse substances when someone is a public employee, one may think substance use does not exist in the field of policing. However rates of alcohol use are actually high among law enforcement who are struggling with psychological distress. Alcohol can be used as a source of coping from workplace trauma. Workplace trauma can include: witnessing other people’s trauma, injury on the job, being involved in critical incidents, death of a co-worker, witnessing a tragic crime scene, officer involved shooting, etc. Officers who respond and witness difficult situations have an increased risk for psychological distress, such as PTSD and depression. A significant relationship exists between PTSD and suicidality among police officers. According to the FBI (2004), there is a strong link to suicidal ideation linked to alcohol and drug use among law enforcement officers.  There is no doubt that working as a law enforcement officer brings risk for substance abuse and psychological distress. Working in law enforcement is a high-risk profession and requires many ongoing efforts to reduce the impact of stress.

10.5.2 Suicide and Homicidal Risk

Suicide and homicidal risk are among the most serious of risks that can occur when working in the field of criminal justice. The Ruderman Family Foundation (2018) found that police officers and firefighters are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Depression are shown to be five times higher among first responders. In addition, the suicide rate among first responders is considerably higher than the general population.

Law enforcement officers also have high rates of homicide towards a family member. One reason behind this high rate is the level of lethality when someone has direct access to a firearm. Rates of intimate partner violence are also high among law enforcement officers. According to Williamson (2020), it is believed that 20 to 40 percent of police families experience intimate partner violence. This is a strikingly large number to consider that the main mission of a law enforcement officer is to serve and protect their community. A recent example is linked here where a supervising U.S. Probation Officer shot and killed his wife outside his home and soon after completed suicide by firearm. Unfortunately these stories are all too common that speak to the higher risk of these tragic events that involve law enforcement officers.

10.5.3 Vicarious Trauma

Vicarious trauma occurs when one’s worldview shifts after providing direct care to people who have experienced trauma. An example of this may include: A service provider begins to believe the world is unsafe after being exposed to multiple people’s experiences about victimization. It is the negative transformation of a professional who has been exposed to complex trauma too severely and too frequently. When professionals are exposed to witnessing, hearing, or responding to traumatic situations, it is inevitable that vicarious trauma will occur. Having insight into how vicarious trauma impacts you is important as this is something that many professionals in this field experience to some degree. What is Vicarious Trauma? | The Vicarious Trauma Toolkit | OVC (ojp.gov)

Figure 10.9 is a clip from Wayne Scott, who is a social worker in Oregon.  He discusses the impacts of vicarious trauma and validates that this is a real and common experience for those working in direct service.

Figure 10.9. IP12: Wayne Scott – Strong @ the Broken Places [YouTube Video]. This video (5 minutes) describes how all humans can relate to vicarious trauma, even those who do not choose the field of social work.  Scott also discusses the meaningful impact that can come from working in the social work field.

10.5.4 Secondary Traumatic Stress

Secondary traumatic stress occurs when direct service providers experience symptoms related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after hearing others share traumatic experiences.  A service provider may begin to experience symptoms such as irritability, hypervigilance (i.e. feeling ‘on edge’), insomnia, exaggerated startle response, etc. Secondary trauma can affect someone directly working with people who have traumatized others or who are survivors of traumatic events. The onset of vicarious trauma varies as well as the intensity. Someone experiencing secondary traumatic stress should speak to a mental health professional and engage in fulfilling self-care practices. Introduction | The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (nctsn.org)

10.5.5 Compassion Fatigue

Compassion fatigue occurs when people have been overexposed to stressful retelling of stories or experiences and begin to lack compassion for those they serve. For example, someone who is a direct service provider serving parents who abuse illicit drugs may begin to lack compassion for these parents after a period of time. Compassion fatigue can be brief, time limited or can be long-lasting. If a service provider continues to experience compassion fatigue and no longer has the ability to show compassion for the population they serve, it is no longer healthy for the service provider to continue serving this population. Mainly because when service providers lack compassion for the people in their direct care, unintentional harm can arise. An example may include a service provider making a non-objective or unfair recommendation to the Court regarding a parent’s illicit drug use or progress in their treatment programming, which then could impact their ability to be reunited with their family. Working in the criminal justice field often requires professionals to make recommendations that can greatly impact other people’s lives. If those making these recommendations can no longer remain objective and impartial, it is no longer safe for the person accessing services to work with someone experiencing compassion fatigue. With that being said, it is not uncommon for direct service providers to experience some form of compassion fatigue throughout their career. If someone begins to experience compassion fatigue, it is imperative they seek support from a direct supervisor to identify these feelings. Having insight into these feelings is essential to remain healthy in the criminal justice field. Are you experiencing compassion fatigue? (apa.org)

Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky is the founder of the Trauma Stewardship Institute. She is also the author of two highly reputable books in the direct service fields, The Trauma Stewardship and The Age of Overwhelm. Figure 10.10  is an approximately 20-minute video that discusses the pieces that contribute to burnout, compassion fatigue, and secondary trauma.

Figure 10.10. TEDxWashingtonCorrectionsCenterforWomen [YouTube Video]. This video (19 minutes) shows a TED talk with Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky.  She discusses the impacts of vicarious trauma and secondary trauma when one works in direct service.

10.5.6 Burnout Risk

Burnout refers to a physical, emotional, and/or mental exhaustion due to on-going stress. It is emotional exhaustion that comes from caring too much for too long (Frendenberger, 1975). Professionals in this field can become depleted of empathy and compassion. Burnout is very common in the field of criminal justice. This occurs mainly because criminal justice professionals are working with people who are struggling with really difficult issues – mental disorders, substance use, criminality, and legal involvement. This field is demanding and it can be difficult to absorb direct exposure of people victimizing others and people being victimized. Regardless of a person’s involvement in this field, whether it be working with victims of crime or perpetrators of crime, this career can cause burnout.

In order to avoid burnout, it is important to maintain healthy self-care practices throughout one’s career. Once someone has reached the state of burnout, it is no longer safe for them to continue working in their profession. Continuing to work once burnout has occurred, can result in harm being done to people they serve or harm being done to themselves and/or others. Professionals experiencing burnout should seek professional support and either take time away from their profession or current duties.

10.5.7 Workforce Shortage Post COVID-19 Pandemic

Post COVID-19 pandemic it has been particularly challenging to keep treatment facilities and treatment programs adequately staffed. During the pandemic, there was a ‘great resignation’ where many people left their jobs, including in community behavioral health. This left many treatment agencies struggling to fill vacant positions, which inherently impacts those trying to access treatment services. Workforce | SAMHSA