CPDâs new mental health adviser comes after pair of officer suicides
By Sun-Times Media Wire
CHICAGO - After two Chicago police officers took their own lives last week, the
Chicago Police Department announced Wednesday that they were hiring Alexa James, CEO of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Chicago, as their senior adviser of wellness.
In her new role with the department, James will focus on bolstering a better understanding of
mental health and the resources available to members, and work with CPD brass to build strategy and implement changes that foster increased awareness and understanding of mental health, Chicago police said in a statement.
Shaken by recent suicides in the ranks, Chicago police announce plan for new senior adviser on mental health
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CPD s new mental health adviser comes after pair of officer suicides
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Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
When the coronavirus pandemic first closed schools last year, one Chicago mother watched as her son then a freshman at a public school on the North Side became hyper focused on Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s daily briefings, spurring disappointment every time he announced a delay in reopening schools.
As Chicago Public Schools remained closed for the rest of the year and did not reopen in the fall, the mother said her son’s anxiety and depression manifested more severely as he became too angry to function.
He remains “emotionally miserable,” said the woman, who asked not to be named. “He’s in therapy, he’s taking medication. This has never been true before.”