Massachusetts State Trooper successfully talks distraught man out of committing suicide

A Massachusetts State Police Trooper consoled a distraught man this afternoon after successfully talking him out of committing suicide.

According to Massachusetts State Police, Troopers and firefighters from Boston and Chelsea responded to the Tobin bridge at 12:04 p.m. for a man threatening to jump from the southbound upper deck. Responding patrols reported that the man had crossed over the barrier and was on the edge of the bridge, contemplating jumping.

Sergeant Peter Sennott and Trooper Randy Roach joined Trooper O’Connor in establishing trust and communication with the man. The State Police Marine Unit also responded to the Mystic River under the bridge.

Shortly after 12:30 p.m., Trooper O’Connor convinced the man to come back over the fence to the road side of the bridge. Trooper O’Connor then sat with the man and talked to him for a while until EMS took him to a Boston hospital for evaluation.

Sgt. Sennott, a Troop H patrol supervisor who is also a member of the Crisis Negotiation Unit, rode in the ambulance with the man. Troopers O’Connor and Roach are assigned to the State Police-Tunnels Barracks.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or contact them online at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org. NSPL is available 24/7 and has a dial prompt for the Veterans Crisis Line as well as a Spanish line.