Law enforcement mental health struggles [Video]

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After a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) worker took their own life while on shift at the Ambassador Bridge Saturday, CTV News Public Safety Analyst Chris Lewis highlighted the mental health burdens faced daily by law enforcement.

“It’s obviously a very sad event,” Lewis said.

“And sadly, too common within emergency services.”

Lewis retired as Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in 2014, following a 36-year career in policing.

He said CBSA agents working the Windsor-Detroit border — Canada’s busiest land crossing — must stay on alert for hours, evaluating thousands of vehicles each day.

“Every time a car approaches, it may be a family coming back from a trip, or someone with a load of cocaine from Mexico,” he said.

“They just never know what they’re going to be facing.”

The union representing the CBSA worker released a statement following the incident, acknowledging the mental health demands …