Discussion: Missouri Guv Candidate Reportedly Dies Of Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound

Discussion for article #233727

So, he was the leading candidate for governor in a relatively red state and had interviews scheduled for later that day. Knowing nothing at all about the guy, Iā€™m going to assume he was playing with a gun and accidentally offed himself. Either that or he was about to be exposed for doing something horrible.

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Those are the thoughts that immediately raced through my mind. Curiosity is rampant atm, but I do feel for his family, what a horrible shock and loss for them.

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for once, Iā€™ll merely offer a snark-free, speculation-free RIP.

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Which is kind of weird because if it was an accident, someone already posted to his Wikipedia page that he committed suicide today. I find that most odd seeing how an investigation would have to determine that first, donā€™t you think? Someone is either quick to write it off as a suicide or they have something theyā€™re not sharing with the public. And why would anyone choose to run for Governor and then turn around and commit suicide?

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Thatā€™s what I was just thinking, especially given the general Conservative practice of ignoring or belittling safety concerns.

Itā€™s odd that there isnā€™t any official statement on whether it was accidental or not.

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Iā€™m seeing it as a self inflicted gunshot wound, which could mean accidental or suicide. And at the end it just says ā€œgunshot woundā€. The one thing about wikipedia is that for ā€œjust happenedā€ stuff they may not be 100% accurate, though they do try to keep things up to date. I think they did a good job here, the guy is in fact dead and it was from a gunshot that was likely self inflicted, be it suicide or accidental.

It just happened, the right thing to do is investigate before making an official conclusion. If they find a note, likely suicide. If it looks like he tripped on something and the gun went off, might be an accident. His wife said he heard him making phone calls, then she heard a shot. The nature of those calls would be relevant. Also relevant would be how far the shot was taken from, the angle, etc.

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That is a huge assumption on your part.

Me,I donā€™t care how he died. He lived by the gun and he died by it. Case closed.

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Maybe it was Mr. Comments who posted it to Wikipedia

What did I assume? It has been determined as a self inflicted gunshot wound, which is what I said. Wow.

He was not the leading candidate but he was challenging the corrupt establishment in the statehouse (see story below) It sure seems like something salacious was about to be exposed. Reminds of a Pennsylvania officeholder ā€“ secretary of state perhaps ā€“ back in the 80s who shot himself at a press conference after some negative information was released.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/missouri-auditor-and-governor-candidate-tom-schweich-has-died/article_879ddcd7-c997-5df3-bc61-39282c4f7434.html

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I hope his family finds peace. My sympathies to his wife and children.

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That was R. Budd Dwyer, the PA state treasurer in 1987. The day before he was scheduled to be sentenced for taking a bribe he called a press conference at which he put a .357 in his mouth and shot himself.

If this was an accident, then that is sad.

If it was a suicide, then it is a tragedy.

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Fair enough. Youā€™re right, itā€™s possible they just donā€™t know enough of the details yet.

I took a look at his Wikipedia page. The first posting regarding his death was at 19:06 from an anonymous server.

Wikipedia may not be based on the west coast, but even that seems a bit premature.

No matter the backstory, itā€™s a tragedy. Hope his family and friends will find peace.

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Anyone can post to Wikipedia at any time, unless the page is locked. That is why itā€™s not acceptable when students cite Wiki as a ā€˜sourceā€™ since everything in it is supplied from outside sources. The Wiki editors will get to it quickly if itā€™s false.

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That was my point. Someone wishing to remain anonymous was already pushing the ā€œself-inflictedā€ angle. Even if the person posting had access to a preliminary autopsy report, the report couldnā€™t have been completed that fast.

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