Two Florida sheriff's deputies, who were in a relationship, took their own lives days apart, leaving their newborn son an orphan.

The deaths of deputies Clayton Osteen and Victoria Pacheco were announced by St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara on Tuesday.

Daily Mail reported that Osteen served since November 2019, while Pacheco joined the force in February 2020. According to Mascara, their department received a call about an attempted suicide shortly before midnight on New Year's Eve.

Clayton Osteen was one of their members and was off-duty at the time. Investigators learned that the person who had tried to take his own life was Osteen.

The sheriff's deputy was taken to a hospital after his suicide attempt. Osteen's family decided to remove him from his life support two days after his arrival at the hospital.

Victoria Pacheco took her own life the next day. She was Osteen's partner, colleague, and mother of his one-month-old son.

Mascara released a statement expressing their grief over the loss of the two members of the sheriff's office. Mascara noted that deputies are "human" and often deal with "stress."

Mirror reported that officials have yet to release details about the nature and circumstances of their deaths. Mascara said they are praying that this tragedy becomes a catalyst for change.

"A catalyst to help ease the stigma surrounding mental well-being and normalize the conversation about the challenges so many of us face on a regular basis," he noted.

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The Florida Sheriff Deputies

Clayton Osteen enlisted into the U.S. Marines as a rifleman in May 2015. The following year, he was seen in a video for the corps that featured their training in the jungles of Brunei.

Friends and loved ones shared memories and photos on social media showing the couple. Ray Tourville wrote on Facebook about Osteen that "the true brother lost the battle inside him," Texas News Today report.

Clayton Osteen and Victoria Pacheco welcomed their son, their first child, in mid-November.

Mental Health in Law Enforcement

Results of a survey study published in JAMA Network Open noted that routine mental health screening of police officers might be warranted in law enforcement agencies.

According to Healio, Katelyn K. Jetelina, MPH, Ph.D., of the department of epidemiology, human genetics and environmental sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center, said evidence suggests that exposure to law enforcement work is linked with increases in many forms of stress.

Jetelina noted that police officers are exposed to traumatic calls for service on a daily basis, including domestic violence, child abuse, car accidents, and homicides.

She further noted that repeated exposure to these instances might be linked with the development of mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, somatization, and burnout.

Jetelina and colleagues wrote that further studies are encouraged regarding patterns and barriers of mental illnesses and characteristics of law enforcement officers who express interest in seeking help.

Results of a prior study revealed that twice as many police officers died by suicide than dying in the line of duty in 2018.

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This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Mary Webber

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