As I watched the video from Forest Park in St. Louis of two St. Louis Metropolitan Police officers responding to a man who had called 911 that he was planning to take his own life, I was struck by the inhumane response of Officer Austin Fraser and Officer Ty Warren, especially when they realized the man had been shot in the head.
The incident, which happened on Sunday, September 10, 2023, is shown on recently released body-worn camera video from Fraser, Warren and a third officer.
Fraser and Warren, the first officers to arrive on scene, after observing the man, identified as Urayoan Rodriguez-Rivera, who lay gasping for breath, Fraser says to Warren, “Let’s cruise around and come back.”
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Fraser and Warren then left the scene and returned 10 minutes later, pretending to arrive for the first time.
Neither officer said, “Call EMS” or asked “What should we do?” or even made an expression of human decency and compassion.
The 11 minutes of body-worn camera video I have watched is appalling. It made me sick to my stomach, despondent for Urayoan Rodriguez-Rivera who lay gasping his last breaths, and heart sick for his family and friends.
In additional video, other officers question why Fraser and Warren left the scene a second time after other officers arrive. I can only imagine the crushing disappointment of their co-workers, supervisors and trainers when they watched this video of officers who had taken an oath to preserve human life.
Value of human life
A distinguishing trait of police officers and other first responders from the people they serve is a willingness to move toward danger and uncertainty rather than away from it. In a lot of instances, it is better for cops and medics to walk briskly with purpose rather than run toward danger so they can assess for risks and look for clues. But regardless of their pace, competent and compassionate responders move with purpose and a command presence toward danger.
Another trait of first responders is a willingness to serve others and protect life. The Metropolitan Police Department – City of St. Louis Special Order 1-07 contains this section on the value of human life.
“Reverence for human life” is a profound burden to accept and carry. I can’t help but wonder what caused Fraser and Warren to stumble so badly and ignore their responsibility to Rodriguez-Rivera. Presumably both officers met the department’s hiring requirements, completed training and served competently enough to retain their positions with the department until this incident.
Stop the descent into indifference
I don’t know the steps on the path of indifference as it is probably unique for each officer. When did the small slips start for Fraser and Warren? Was it a specific incident? Was it the accumulation of calls? Was it the influence of peers and department culture? Was it a lack of supervision? Were there minor infractions where peers didn’t intervene, or supervisors didn’t thoroughly investigate and remediate?
If you’re a patrol officer, please watch the video and then ask yourself, how will I hold myself accountable to have reverence for human life, obey my duty to intervene and care for myself in a way that gives me the emotional and physical strength I need to do the right thing for those I am called to serve?
If you’re a supervisor, please watch the video and then ask yourself, how will I hold myself accountable to being the officer I want to see in my patrol officers, recognizing and valuing high performers, identifying low performers, providing them feedback and training to improve their performance and correct minor problems before they descend into career ending and departmental damaging?
