A chilling Facebook post, a profile picture changed to a symbol signifying the death of a police officer and an apologetic text to his wife, were the last actions of a police officer who took his own life.
Deputy State Coroner Naomi Kereru is holding an inquest into the death of Senior Constable Ben Warren, 35, at the South Australian Police Academy on February 27, 2022.
Moments before his death, the father-of-two posted a news story to Facebook about a suicidal man who killed two innocent motorists, commenting: "I didn't find him and it has never left me. Michael Frank Knowles, may you rot in hell."
The court was told Sen Const Warren was the first officer on scene of the December 2014 crash near Whyalla and had been desperately searching for Knowles before the crash, after being told he was suicidal.
Knowles was found guilty of two murders and sentenced to a minimum of 23 years' jail.
Sen Const Warren's friend and colleague, Sergeant Julian Blackwell, told the court their team had been challenged by "traumatic job after traumatic job" including a series of fatalities, around the time of the double murder.
Sen Const Warren had indicated he felt personally responsible for the deaths because he'd not been able to find Knowles, Sgt Blackwell said.
After posting the story about Knowles on Facebook, Sen Const Warren had changed his profile picture to a SAPOL symbol with a thin blue line - "a symbol that signifies the death of a police officer", counsel assisting Rebecca Schell said.
"Upon seeing this, (his wife) Rebecca Warren was immediately concerned … and she raised the alarm".
He texted her stating: "I'm sorry for everything. Take care of the kids for me".
Ms Schell said two senior officers had tried to get him to engage with the employee assistance scheme but he refused, and insisted he was OK and did not require professional assistance.
Sgt Blackwell described his friend as "a nice guy, jovial, enjoyed telling dad jokes, but had a gruff exterior".
"He was like a cactus - prickly on the outside and soft in the middle," he told the court.
Ms Schell asked Sgt Blackwell if he would support a recommendation in a commissioner's inquiry report for the employee assistance scheme to administer mandatory psychiatric reviews for all operational officers.
"I think it will break the stigma of seeking mental help," he said.
"If those of us on the road were made to see a psychologist once a year, then it would become the norm - I wholeheartedly support that."
He would also support mandatory psychological assessments for officers exposed to a certain number or type of event.
"We know society and social media are talking about mental health more freely nowadays in public and that's fantastic, but SAPOL has dragged its feet," he said.
Ms Schell said the inquiry would try to establish if Sen Const Warren was suffering from PTSD, whether his death was preventable, and whether improvements be made to identify officers with PTSD and engage them in support.
The inquest continues.
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