tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post5865987374936864949..comments2023-11-02T02:40:48.410-07:00Comments on Crime Fiction Collective: Suicide Notes: Fact and FallacyL.J. Sellershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10213491074676394406noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-20116623851606333032011-11-08T13:31:29.332-08:002011-11-08T13:31:29.332-08:00Fascinating post, Tom. I've known people who&...Fascinating post, Tom. I've known people who've completed suicide, and neither of them left a note.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12487464497446199247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-65224615340567394732011-11-08T13:22:33.235-08:002011-11-08T13:22:33.235-08:00Thanks for the comment Mollie. You know, even with...Thanks for the comment Mollie. You know, even with a note the friends and family can have a hard time accepting it. Sometimes they are correct and it isn't a suicide at all. Oftentimes we just don't know people as well as we think. One thing I have learned over the years is that we rarely know anyone as well as we think we do. Sometimes we don't even know ourselves at times, what we are capable of. Think of your friends and family and ask yourself how well you really know them. Do you know their daily habits? If they are in a bad mood today, what is the cause? What's the most troubling thing on their mind right now? I'll bet the real answers might surprise you if you knew them. Not because they are weird or anything, just probably not what you expected. As fiction writers we can make all this stuff up as long as it's believable. but in real life the answers can be as varied as the people themselves. We all have a life history that shapes our decisions and beliefs and unraveling that Gordian knot is the toughest puzzle of all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-35996713231668063342011-11-08T11:45:11.708-08:002011-11-08T11:45:11.708-08:00Great post.I've read that many family members ...Great post.I've read that many family members and friends of suicide victims often find it hard to believe, especially if there's no note and so insist on a murder investigation. I have an "apparent" suicide in my first novel and find find the topic fascinating. Thanks for an intriguing, informative post.Mollie Bryanhttp://www.molliecoxbryan.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-54268782742884175512011-11-08T08:53:54.743-08:002011-11-08T08:53:54.743-08:00Sorry to say I have only a vague familiarity with ...Sorry to say I have only a vague familiarity with that case. Based on what you've said I can see why you'd think it was not a suicide. However, I have had cases where an individual will restrain themselves during a suicide. I once published a case study in which the victim tied his feet, gagged his mouth, and put handcuffs on his hands behind his back. Among other evidence the handcuffs were determined to be his own and upon close inpection they were magician's handcuffs with a quick-release lever. He could easily get out of them and was quite familiar with their operation according to friends. Can't say anything about the case you're referring to but I've learned that things are not always what they appear to be and unless you're examing all of the evidence (in detail) you may be missing something critical.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-3394513157261460522011-11-08T08:17:33.768-08:002011-11-08T08:17:33.768-08:00The case you're referring to actually happened...The case you're referring to actually happened here in San Diego, Coronado to be exact. The victim was found hanging from a second floor balcony. The interesting thing is that even though her hands were tied behind her back and with the absence of a suicide note, authorities still ruled it a suicide. The family isnt isn't happy about that; they suspect foul play and recently had the body exhumed for further examination by a privately-hired third party. Of course, the author (and journalist) in me has been following the case since it started. A fascinating storyANDREW E. KAUFMANhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08835920472268730244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-61981634606128906262011-11-08T08:04:08.495-08:002011-11-08T08:04:08.495-08:00Let me try again. It was in California. Here's...Let me try again. It was in California. Here's a link:<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RJgmhs7NkoPeg Brantleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04906858123466177508noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-51816491631746755582011-11-08T08:03:05.560-08:002011-11-08T08:03:05.560-08:00This comment has been removed by the author.Peg Brantleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04906858123466177508noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-19731671235080529962011-11-08T07:47:52.695-08:002011-11-08T07:47:52.695-08:00Well Phillip, it's difficult to get inside the...Well Phillip, it's difficult to get inside the mind of some people especially when they are obviously contemplating death. I wouldn't be bothered by someone using their nickname if the note is intended for someone who recognizes that name. Suicide victims often recognize who will likely be the first to find them if they don't call police right before doing the act. Having said that, a nickname or initial can be suspicious if ther are other red flags around. One of the serial killers I have dealt with killed his wife and children and staged it to look like a murder suicide by the mother (wife). He was a dominant husband and told his wife to sign her initial at the bottom of a blank page and she did it. He then typed out the suicide note and committed the crime. The wife had severe arthritis so seeing the one initial was not that unusual but coupled with other case evidence and the content of the note it was pretty obvious what happened.<br /><br />Peg, was the case you're referring to here in Colorado?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-39245726823565881572011-11-08T07:33:04.767-08:002011-11-08T07:33:04.767-08:00What an amazing insight and useful for writers lik...What an amazing insight and useful for writers like me. My first novel "Who Else is There?" features a suicide with a note, although the reader is only told the gist of the note as a detective refers to it. My second novel "Suffer Little Children" also has a suicide note, but I would be interested to know whether the observation that my investigating character makes is correct. He thinks the victim would have signed his name, rather than a nickname that very few people know. Is he right?Philip Catshillhttp://www.philipcatshill.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-20218482471665828712011-11-08T07:13:59.112-08:002011-11-08T07:13:59.112-08:00Fascinating! Thanks for another terrific post.Fascinating! Thanks for another terrific post.L.J. Sellershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10213491074676394406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4954486699810607306.post-88612935770738220942011-11-08T07:05:43.410-08:002011-11-08T07:05:43.410-08:00Tom, as usual, an intriguing post.
I'm intere...Tom, as usual, an intriguing post.<br /><br />I'm interested in your take on the "Millionaire Murder?" case where the young son died, and then the girlfriend supposedly committed suicide. I can't think of the name, dang it.Peg Brantleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04906858123466177508noreply@blogger.com