Receiving news about the unexpected death of a loved one is a traumatic event. How that news is delivered can exacerbate the trauma if it is delivered in a clumsy or insensitive way. Furthermore, how law enforcement officers deliver this news will forever impact how the receiver views the law enforcement profession. As a result, death notifications are not simply an unpleasant but necessary part of the job. Death notifications are an opportunity to serve one’s community in a compassionate way, and improve perceptions of the law enforcement profession – but only if done properly.
This webinar will present evidence-based best practices developed from the field of medicine and psychology for how to deliver traumatic news in the easiest and most sensitive manner possible. It will address how the officer should prepare before contacting the next of kin. The webinar will suggest ways officers can use their behavior to set the stage and psychologically prepare the receiver for the bad news once contact it made.
The training will cover what research has revealed are the best ways to deliver the message with the least trauma to the receiver, and will address the various responses the officer can expect to encounter, realizing each person processes grief differently. Finally, the training will conclude with the best ways to disengage from the interaction, and discuss officer self-care after the call is over.
This webinar will provide patrol personnel and detectives with useful information so that they are prepared to handle this responsibility in the most professional manner possible.
Chief Academic Officer, Dolan Consulting Group
| Dr. Richard Johnson
Richard R. Johnson, PhD, is a trainer and researcher with Dolan Consulting Group. He has decades of experience teaching and training on various topics associated with criminal justice, and has conducted research on a variety of topics related to crime and law enforcement. He holds a bachelor's degree in public administration and criminal justice from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) at Indiana University, with a minor in social psychology. He possesses a master's degree in criminology from Indiana State University. He earned his doctorate in criminal justice from the School of Criminal Justice at the University of Cincinnati with concentrations in policing and criminal justice administration.
Dr. Johnson has published more than 50 articles on various criminal justice topics in academic research journals, including Justice Quarterly, Crime & Delinquency, Criminal Justice & Behavior, Journal of Criminal Justice, and Police Quarterly. He has also published more than a dozen articles in law enforcement trade journals such as the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Police Chief, Law & Order, National Sheriff, and Ohio Police Chief. His research has primarily focused on police-citizen interactions, justice system responses to domestic violence, and issues of police administration and management. Dr. Johnson retired as a full professor of criminal justice at the University of Toledo in 2016.
Prior to his academic career, Dr. Johnson served several years working within the criminal justice system. He served as a trooper with the Indiana State Police, working uniformed patrol in Northwest Indiana. He served as a criminal investigator with the Kane County State's Attorney Office in Illinois, where he investigated domestic violence and child sexual assault cases. He served as an intensive probation officer for felony domestic violence offenders with the Illinois 16th Judicial Circuit. Dr. Johnson is also a proud military veteran having served as a military police officer with the U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard, including active duty service after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Before that, he served as an infantry soldier and field medic in the U.S. Army and Army National Guard.
