GREAT FALLS — When the Great Falls Police Department recently received a call about a man threatening suicide, several officers responded.
Two of those officers - including Robert Snook - jumped into action when they got to the scene, using quick thinking and a little bit of muscle to help end the situation peacefully.
"We located the male in the front yard and confirmed that he did have a firearm in his hand. He was sitting behind a tree,” Snook said.
The call to the front yard of a home on a recent Saturday is one that may stick with Snook.
He is a rookie with the department. The call happened on his final day of field training.
"I think there's definitely, you know, certain calls you go to that kind of stick with you,” Snook said.
He said tackling the man with the gun was a calculated move.
"Officer Irish played a big role in that, obviously. Kind of confirm what are his intentions with it. But at the same time he really didn't know we were there so officer Irish kind of thought maybe sneaking up behind him may be a good approach,” Snook explained. "Officer Irish went to the left and I went to the right. We pretty much just jumped on top of him, put him on his stomach, (and) pulled his arm out securing that firearm."
Afterward, the officers helped the man up, talked with him about what was going on, contacted his family, and made sure the man got to a hospital to get help.
"You could tell he was definitely in a different state of mind at that time. I think he was appreciative but i think at the same time he still was thinking about what was going on,” said Snook. "I feel like it was just the job that we all signed up to do and that's why we're here."
The police department encourages anyone thinking about suicide or anyone who knows anyone who may be thinking about suicide to reach out to someone for help.
- American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Montana Chapter (https://afsp.org/chapter/montana)
- Montana’s Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Crisis Lifeline (https://dphhs.mt.gov/suicideprevention/988)
- National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (https://988lifeline.org/)
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