Four current and former sheriff deputies from the Harris County Sheriff's Department in Houston, Texas, have died of suicide since February, including three in a week. Authorities say.
In the first sad incident, retired Deputy Nguyen died of suicide on February 6th. Local ABC 13.
A few weeks later, 37-year-old Deputy Christina Kohler was found dead on March 13 after being declared missing for more than a week, the station reported.
Three days later, the body of former Maria Vasquez's Deputy Bureau was found, and a Houston medical inspector deemed the death a self-harm. Vasquez retired from the unit in December 2024.
Then, on March 19, retired Deputy Deputy William Boseman took his life after spending 24 years at the Harris County Sheriff's Office, the outlet reported.
The death “had surprised many of us.” The president of Harris County Councillors' organization Jose Lopez said.
“It hits close to home and it reminds us how vulnerable our lives are, and it reminds us that we need to be careful of each other. We need to take care of each other,” Lopez told ABC 13.
Lopez added that HCSO has launched an ongoing mental health initiative to address the intrusive trends.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez also lamented the horrifying rash of suicide.
“Today we learn of a retired Harris County Sheriff's Office who died of obvious suicide. This will be three for us within a week. Our hearts are heavy. We express our deep sadness to our family, colleagues and friends. I wrote it on Facebook.
If you are suffering from the thought of suicide, or have experienced a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-Well for free confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside of the five districts, dial the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 24/7 at 988; siadypreventionlifeline.org.
