CIT Officer of Quarter – Q2 2020

On March 29, 2020, Senior Police Officer P.D. Norris was dispatched to a ‘Suspicious Person’ call on the roof of a parking garage at Intercontinental Airport – Houston.  SPO Norris arrived on scene at the location and found a 50 year old distraught male hanging over the side railing of the garage stating that he “could not do it any longer.” 

SPO Norris engaged the man in communication, allowing him to discuss what had led him to the point that he wanted to end his life, and began calmly de-escalating the situation.  The man told SPO Norris that he had recently lost his job and, as a result, was evicted from his home because of the virus, adding that it was the third time he had literally lost everything.

Through his calm demeanor and outward showing of empathy and understanding, SPO Norris was able to talk the man into coming back over the railing and eventually into sitting on the ground of the garage floor.  Once SPO had adequate back-up, he was able to detain the distraught man without incident, had HFD check his vitals (because the man said he felt lightheaded/dizzy) and, once cleared, took him to the Neuropsychiatric Center for evaluation/treatment.