CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — September is suicide awareness month and September 26 is National Law Enforcement Suicide Awareness Day. To honor the day, the FBI center in Clarksburg shined a light on the number of officers affected by suicide.

A year ago, Clarksburg’s FBI division began collecting national data on law enforcement suicide to better understand why it happens and how to prevent it.

12 News spoke with Scott Schubert, the section chief of the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) division with law enforcement engagement and data sharing section, on the importance of recognizing this day with his fellow employees.

If you look across the country, mental health is a huge issue with all organizations. Law enforcement, I think it plays into it a little bit more just because they see things you pray nobody else ever has to see and they have to continue going on doing their job. You can see something and the very next minute you’re answering another call so, we’ve got to do everything we can that will help agencies better protect their officers.

Scott Schubert, CJIS Division Section Chief

Therapy dogs and miniature therapy ponies were welcomed into Clarksburg’s FBI facility to help employees ease the tension behind the subject of suicide. A presentation was also held with guest speakers in the field, a widow from a fallen officer and a psychologist with over forty years of experience working with law enforcement.