What is suicide by cop?

• A. An encounter in which a suicidal person attempts to die by suicide by forcing a law enforcement officer to use lethal force.
• B. A police officer directly causing death in a confrontation with a suspect
• C. A technique used by crisis counselors to de-escalate situations
• D. A medical procedure to treat self-harm injuries

Answer: (A)

Suicide by cop is when a person who intends to die deliberately provokes a confrontation with law enforcement in an attempt to have the officer use lethal force against them. The key is the person’s goal to end their life through the officer’s actions, not simply dying in a regular confrontation or through another type of intervention. They may threaten with a weapon or set up a dangerous situation to ensure the officer responds with lethal force.

This definition explains why the described scenario is the correct one: it centers on the suicidal person’s intent to die by police involvement. The other options don’t fit because they describe outcomes or activities that aren’t driven by the person’s intention to die at the hands of an officer, such as a non-suicidal police shooting, a crisis-counseling technique, or a medical procedure.