The Kennesaw State Police Department reported in their daily crime log that there were two possible suicide attempts by students on the Kennesaw campus in September during National Suicide Prevention Month.
The first report listed in the daily crime logs was reported on Sept. 5. An incident report obtained from KSU Police states that an officer was dispatched to the top of the Central Parking Deck “in reference to a possible suicide attempt.”
The responding officer stated in the report that he found a student walking by himself near the corner of the top level of the parking deck. It states that he spoke with the student and asked “if everything was okay.” The student responded that he was fine, and he told the officer he had been trying to reach his ex-girlfriend.
The report states that the student agreed to let the officer drive with him to the bottom of the parking deck. Once they reached the bottom of the deck, the student informed the officer that he “had been dealing with this problem for multiple years,” and he said that he had been diagnosed with depression several years ago.
The Cobb County Fire Department arrived on the scene and paramedics attempted to convince the student to go to the hospital. The responding officer also offered to drive the student to a hospital, but he refused, according to the report.
“[The student] was concerned about missing work and the payments related to a hospital visit,” the report stated.
The officer called the student’s ex-girlfriend to ask if she knew anyone who could stay with him so that he was not alone. The report states that she did not want to involve herself in the situation and she did not know anyone else who could stay with him.
The student told the officer that he “just wanted to go home and he was fine.” The officer gave him a ride to his car and the student left campus, according to the report.
Another possible suicide attempt reported on Wednesday, Sept. 19 was listed in the daily crime logs on KSU police’s website. The location listed for the report was at the Skip Spann Connector at the Kennesaw campus. KSU Police did not have the incident report ready in time for publication.
The two reports have since been removed from the daily crime logs. According to a statement from the KSU PD, the crime logs are updated at the beginning of each business day and officers may change case classifications after responding to certain cases.
“For example, a report may come in as a suspicious person, which would be reflected on the crime report as such, but once the police are able to locate the individual, it may have been someone trying to distribute flyers without permission so that would be reclassified as unauthorized solicitation,” the statement explains.
The KSU PD said that the two incidents were reclassified as welfare checks, which are not a classification included in the daily crime logs.
September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and Sept. 24-27 is Mental Health Matters Week at KSU.
“We use this month to reach out to those affected by suicide, raise awareness and connect individuals with suicidal ideation to treatment services,” the National Alliance on Mental Illness states on its website. “It is also important to ensure that individuals, friends and families have access to the resources they need to discuss suicide prevention.”
According to the CDC, 45,000 people died to suicide in 2016 and suicide rates have gone up by nearly 30 percent in half of the states since 1999.
NAMI encourages anyone experiencing difficult or suicidal thoughts to call the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-8255. KSU’s Counseling and Psychological Services also offers counseling sessions for students. Those interested can find more information on their website, counseling.kennesaw.edu.
