Former police officer shares mental trauma to help others going through it

CHARLOTTE — Former Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Officer Chad Webster is talking about changes he wants to see that can help officers who experience trauma.

He reached a breaking point in 2020 during the George Floyd protests.

“Because I wanted to help people, I thought policing would be the best avenue for me,” Webster told Channel 9.

He spent nearly two decades with CMPD serving on Charlotte’s streets and in local schools. He described how he coped with tragic cases.

“You just take these awful things, put them in a box, put it up in your head, and you fill up some space,” he said. “Because if it’s here, where you’re thinking day to day, it’s going to take away from your ability to think in the moment and on the job.”

Compartmentalizing worked for him until the summer of 2020.

“We put a line (there) to push everybody that way,” he said.

They were trying to contain protestors after the death of George Floyd, but officers were outnumbered in Uptown.

“Explosions were going off. Fireworks were being thrown here and there. We were getting hit with frozen water bottles,” he said.

The attacks were personal and suddenly everything changed.

“As we turned the corner. that’s when I laughed,” he said. “We turned the corner … It was nothing I’d ever felt before.”

He had a mental breakdown.

“It was like a fuse blew,” he said.

It was as if the boxes of things he’d tried not to remember flew open in his head.

“I’m having some nightmares. I’m having night sweats. I’m low energy, waking up, panic attacks, yelling out,” he said.

It ended his career in law enforcement.

“I drank all the time. I was so ashamed that I had PTSD,” Webster said. “I was so ashamed that people knew about it. I was ashamed that I had to leave the department and the job.”

He took an early retirement, and his family moved to the beach.

He got help through counseling and medications.

“There’s other ways we can contribute to society,” he said.

Webster wants to make things better for first responders and calls on the department to be more proactive in breaking down the stigma.

“We need people coming out to us to remind us, even if it’s just at roll calls, just plant that seed somewhere so the officers know they’re not alone,” Webster said. “And if they do need to tell someone something, they can tell them without their career being over in a minute.”

Officers should only have to report that they are experiencing trauma only once, he said.

“I had to tell my immediate supervisor, then I had to tell my captain, then I had to tell downtown internal affairs,” Webster said. “I had to tell people from the city, and here I am, you know, reliving this moment over and over and over. So one of my things would be, ‘Hey, let’s do a recorded statement if you want.’ You know, so I can say this once.”

He said he could save lives by being candid about his experience.

“This is hopefully something that I can do, outside of the uniform, to tell people to just get help,” Webster said. “I mean, the weak don’t get help. The strong get help.”

CMPD cannot comment on confidential health and wellness information for any specific employees.

The department released the following statement to Channel 9:

Proactive Measures

The CMPD has taken a proactive approach to providing essential mental health services to its sworn officers, civilian employees and retirees. Some of these efforts include programs developed by the department, requesting state resources, holding debriefings after critical incidents, and welcoming chaplains with the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team to provide emotional and spiritual support. The department cannot wait for traumatic incidents to arise, instead, it encourages and prioritizes officers seeking mental health treatment for their wellness and that of their families.

The Office of Employee Wellness was established in 2023 and offers initial in-person mental health and wellness counseling to connect employees with resources as needed, utilizing a wide network of care providers. CMPD also has a dedicated peer-support team and a Chaplaincy unit, which provide additional peer-to-peer and spiritual support for our employees. All the services offered aim to provide a safe space for employees to work through the effects of trauma which can impact many aspects of their personal and professional lives.

The Office of Employee Wellness conducts routine training with supervisory staff across the department on how to identify signs of physical, mental, and emotional struggles within employees. This training is driven by a passion for providing resources with empathy and the goal of improving the lives of our employees.

In addition, CMPD has a Clinical Care Access Pilot (CCAP). CCAP is a program supported by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Foundation, that reduces financial barriers to mental health care access for both sworn officers and civilian employees.

The program provides up to $6,000 of reimbursement for in-patient treatment and up to $2,600 for outpatient treatments. In 2024, the program has paid over $40,000 in reimbursements for out-of-pocket costs for employees who have sought treatment.

Soon, The Office of Employee Wellness will include a team of three Behavioral Health Technicians and licensed counselors. Officers will also have access to support through the Behavioral Health Technician. Additionally, retired officers are welcome to contact CMPD’s Human Resources Division at any time if they need further assistance. HR now offers a course titled “Relaxing in Retirement” which prepares officers close to retirement for mental health barriers, financial expectations, and family life during retirement.

Mental Health Resources

• The Public Safety Occupational Health Clinic and EAP are available to all sworn employees, communications and crime scene employees at no cost and provide mental health counseling. This team is always on standby to support in critical incidents.
• The Public Safety Occupational Health Clinic employs behavioral health counselors who specialize in public safety and are dedicated resources to police and fire employees. This clinic is devoted to our public safety workforce. The behavioral health benefit provides counseling in the clinic and coordinates services that go beyond the scope of the clinic – such as assistance with getting placed in a substance abuse treatment facility. There is no cost for services in this clinic.
• The Marathon Health, BCBS and Teladoc services are available to all CMPD employees on city insurance. The cost depends on the plan they are in. Marathon Health provides free/low-cost behavioral health counseling in the clinics.
• The Employee Assistance Program is available to all employees and their household members at no cost. The benefit provides up to 10 counseling sessions per issue per year. This benefit is also available under COBRA when an employee separates services from the City of Charlotte.
• CMPD also has an Employee Wellness Clinical Team which provides access to psychological services, including consultation, brief intervention and referral services needed by CMPD employees. Here’s the link to their services - https://charlottepolicejobs.org/employee-wellness- clinical-team/. The Public Safety Occupational Health Clinic continues to be a collaborative partner in this initiative and is available to support this team in the education and intervention efforts. It is no longer lead by a psychologist, but a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor.
• Retirees, under 65, that elect city retiree insurance have access to Marathon Health, BCBS and Teladoc services. The cost is going to depend on the plan they are in. Marathon Health provides free/low-cost behavioral health services in the clinics and retirees can utilize these services.
• Retirees, over 65, transition to Medicare and are ineligible for the services on this brochure, but would be eligible for Medicare coverage for such services. They would also have access to services through the retiree supplement or advantage plan if elected.
• Retirees not on city medical insurance would have access to mental health services through their insurance provider.

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