The story reads like a Hollywood drama.
Police Officers Ian McEnaney and Greg Burns were parked at 221 Groton Road when they saw a female passenger hanging out of the window of a passing vehicle, screaming for help.
In separate cars they each pulled onto the road, lights flashing and sirens blaring. Suddenly the vehicle they were chasing swerved into a tree and came to a halt. The woman ran to the police officers, falling to the ground, “crying hysterically” and “overcome with emotion.”
This was the narrative presented to Police Chief Thomas McEnaney by Capt. Mark Chambers, who presented the two officers with exceptional service medals at the April 25 selectmen’s meeting.
It was April 17 just before 3 a.m. when the scene unfolded. The woman was inside the vehicle with a male driver. A brief car chase heading west on Groton Road ended with the man crashing the vehicle into a tree and coming to a stop, wrote Chambers. He did not identify the man nor the woman and an email to the Police Department requesting information was not immediately returned.
“The operator ignored the exit orders for a short period of time before abruptly exiting the vehicle and yelling at the officers,” Chambers wrote. “The operator was visibly upset, yelling to the officers to shoot him and kill him. The operator repeatedly motioned toward the area of his waist and yelled that he had a firearm. Officer G. Burns and Officer I. McEnaney remained calm and had the presence of mind to observe that no bulge or other indicator of a firearm was present. After several attempts, Officer I. McEnaney was able to confirm with the female victim that the operator was not in possession of a firearm and was experiencing a mental health crisis.”
They approached the man “in an attempt to subdue him,” wrote Chambers.
“The operator backed away and picked up a large piece of wood from a pile of construction debris in front 305 Groton Road,” Chambers continued. “The piece of wood was attached to other debris and was eventually dropped by the operator. Fearing for their safety and the safety of others present, Officer I. McEnaney rapidly closed the distance and tackled the operator to the ground with the assistance of Officer G. Burns. The operator continued to be assaultive towards both officers and struggled with them during their attempt to place him in handcuffs. Eventually, the operator was handcuffed, searched and transported to the hospital under a section 12 mental health commitment. No injuries were sustained by the operator or the officers involved.”
In his memo, Chambers praised the two officers for their “professionalism, courage and proper application of use of force techniques,” adding that the incident could have ended with serious injuries to both officers and the driver, or could have been lethal.
Selectman Chairman Andrea Peraner-Sweet recognized McEnaney and Burns at the start of the meeting.
“I can’t think of actions that more epitomize the actions that we expect of our police officers of good, good solid policing and the exercise of good judgment,” she said. “You’re a credit to Westford, you’re a credit to the police department, you’re a credit to your families and you’re a credit to yourselves. And on behalf of the Board of Selectmen we would like to congratulate you on your actions two weeks ago. Thank you so much.”
In presenting the two officers with medals, Chambers noted they had both received training to deal with mental health crises. It’s not clear what type of training they received and how long it lasted.
Though controversial, the term “suicide by cop” has come to mean a situation in which a civilian behaves in such an aggressive and dangerous manner toward police that they are forced to shoot the person. According to the Washington Post database, a total of nine men were shot and killed by police in Massachusetts in 2015. Three of those men showed signs of mental illness, according to the Post. In 2016, 12 were killed by police, but no data was provided regarding whether or not there was a mental health crisis. Nationally, 963 were killed by police with 241 known mental health crises, and 722 unknown.
“These guys were rock stars that night,” said Chambers. “Just the ability to recognize the situation, diagnose that this person was in mental health crisis and having the patience and forethought just to see how the situation evolved. In some other departments this could have ended much worse and probably would have. But it’s a credit to the training their patience, their fortitude as police officers here in Westford that we do go the extra mile.”
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