Louisiana mayor's death stirs furor

[helderheid]

By DOUG SIMPSON, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 25 minutes ago



WESTLAKE, La. - In the hours before his death on the evening of Dec. 30, the first black mayor of this overwhelmingly white town started learning his new job.


About noon, he set City Hall's alarm system for the first time. He got instructions on how to raise and lower the U.S. flag. He had already ordered a new mayoral letterhead with his name on it and a button-down shirt embroidered "Gerald Washington, Mayor."

A few hours later he indulged in a hobby, placing a $4 bet at a nearby horse racing track.

But by 10 p.m. Gerald "Wash" Washington was dead in the deserted parking lot of a former high school, a bullet wound in his chest. His gun was found by the body.

The coroner and the sheriff have pronounced Washington's death a suicide — a finding that has embroiled this oil-refinery town in conspiracy theories, with Washington's kin and friends insisting he had no reason to end his life.

Some have accused police of covering up a murder — perhaps a racially motivated one.

MORE

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070105/ap_on_re_us/mayor_s_death

[madeline_con]

1. No fucking WAY this was suicide!!!! n/t

:mad:

[Squatch]

2. And what forensic evidence, pray tell, do you base your assumption on?

[AspenRose]

8. It's just a hunch.

I have the same suspicions myself.

[Squatch]

9. Based on forensic evidence or the weird circumstances?

Because the article talks about the coroner's conclusion.

[varkam]

10. As far as forensic evidence...

all I read is that there was GSR in the wound - all that means is that he was shot from point-blank range. Doesn't necessarily mean a suicide. I myself think it's rather suspicious that he just won an election and then decides to kill himself, but maybe that's just me.

[helderheid]

11. Well, count me in on being suspicious

[madeline_con]

12. Do you have proof it WAS? n/t

[slowry]

17. Lets see...

the gunshot that killed him was from a gun pressed firmly against his chest and there were no defensive wounds. That's definitive proof of suicide!

:sarcasm:

I hear ya.

I can't find a single article which mentions anyone confirming, specifically, that it was even his gun that killed him. They all just say that the soot found on his chest indicates a shot fired from extremely close range, and that his gun was on the ground near where he was found. No mention of the gun or vehicle being clean of anyone else's fingerprints, or having been gone over for evidence at all. In fact, all I can find are statements such as:

"This is the South, so of course everybody's going to say it was some white guy shooting a black guy."
- Dr. Terry Welke, the Calcasieu Parish coroner who ruled that Washington killed himself.

And another appeal to emotion, with no evidence:

"The coroner said the reaction of Washington's family to the suicide finding - disbelief - is not unusual."

Well, no shit. But you can't present that as an argument against it being a homicide.

Whatever. I'm not saying it's impossible he killed himself, but it seems quite a leap to suggest that the lack of defensive wounds rules out homicide -- that is bloody ridiculous.

[pitohui]

18. this article is slanted

in the local coverage they say that the coroner and sheriff specifically reminded the family that it was their right to ask the state police to investigate if they did not agree w coroner's findings

[bluewave]

3. An open invitation to southern blacks from Seattle

It's difficult to leave your home town, but I'm convinced blacks will never get a chance in the south, at least in my lifetime. Move here and get away from this nonsense. Nobody should have to put up with it, and there's no way to save the south from itself.

Move here. It's much better.

[Squatch]

4. Depends on what part of Seattle you're talking about.

The U District, Ballard, Wallingford, Capitol Hill, Woodinville, very nice places.

Pioneer Square, South Seattle, SeaTac, not so much.

[cdnwannabe]

15. Wherever folks looking to escape Red State tyranny go....

whatever you do, don't move into far-flung suburbs, or if you can avoid it, any suburbs. 20 years from now, if you're still working, you'll regret it. They will be mostly ghost towns, mark my words.

My town, Portland Oregon, is one of the few that I know of that has transit that reaches suburbs, and they aren't far-flung 'burbs like many cities. Down the road, the hardest hit suburban areas will be those in the Southeast and Southwest (see The Long Emergency by Thomas Kunstler).

[pitohui]

16. never had a chance? he was a huge success

30 years as a refinery worker (this ain't a shabby paying job), 12 years as councilman, obviously beloved by the town, and overwhelmingly voted into office of mayor?

he was plenty successful and had plenty of chance, and it appears that town was completely behind him, as he was elected by an landslide

i don't think many men kill themselves at peak of success, but it can happen (kurt cobain springs to mind) so i don't know what to think

he could have been murdered in a personal beef (by someone jealous of his success) or it could be suicide (altho it doesn't smell like it, does it?) or...we just don't know

let's hope the state police can uncover more evidence

[bluewave]

19. My problem is that even the question shows something.

In Washington, if a black politician died and it was labeled a suicide, it probably is a suicide. A black mayor (which we had for a 8 years) would never question his safety up here.

[pitohui]

20. you'd have the exact same questions if this happened in iceland to a white dude

a man, at the peak of success, at the moment of triumph, greatly beloved by his community is found in a parking lot shot dead

i don't care what town, or how holy it is up there in ecotopia, such a death would raise questions

the coroner and the sheriff advised the family to have the state police do a separate investigation, if there be a conspiracy or cover-up, it is not because the town is involved, it's because they're out of their depth and don't know where to turn

this is a true mystery, on one hand it may be reasonable that a depressed person kill himself in a parking lot to spare his family the mess and the chance of seeing his body before it was cleaned up

on the other hand, people recently voted to be mayor and prom queen and best-loved personality of their small town are not generally depressed, are they?

the questions are being raised because dammit this is hard to accept and understand

i don't care if they'd voted in a green mayor for mars, it would be hard to accept and understand w.out questions considering the circumstances

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

21. Meh.

Lots of unarmed black guys getting shot by the SPD lately.

[Cha]

5. Poor fucking guy!

You just know he suicided himself..:sarcasm:

This is Red Hot..I can only imagine how the people felt who supported him!

RIP~ Gerald "Wash" Washington O8) Here's hoping Justice is served for your early departure.

[Kerrytravelers]

6. I'd be interested to see this unfold.

[irislake]

7. Hmmmmmm

Suspicious is too mild a word.

[AlCzervik]

13. Didn't something similar happen a few years back--maybe in Texas?

same scenario, newly elected black mayor or sheriff? I know one of you will know what i'm talking about and you will even have the details.

[pitohui]

14. i hope the state police brings some closure to this

the coroner and sheriff are not covering anything up, they suggested to the family that they invite the state police in to check their results

i'm afraid conspiracies leapt to my mind as well, but i don't see evidence here that it was racial as this man was a very well-liked leader in the town even before becoming mayor

i hope we can learn more about what actually happened

[jwirr]

22. Hate crimes are the jurisdiction of the Feds. Why are they not

looking into this. They should be part of it for the sake of the community. They need to know the truth.