Re: Moscow suicide

["bill london" <bill_london@hotmail.com>]

Dan-
Thanks for responding with more info on this suicide and the release 
of information about it.
I agree that the school officials and others behaved in an amazingly 
caring and responsible way to their primary duties of 
protecting/teaching the students.  That was wonderful.
However, I still believe that there was absolutely no reason for not 
telling the media what happened.  As you noted below, the family was 
fully informed by the late afternoon (Tuesday).  The mechanisms for 
spreading the word and providing comfort for the students were in 
place.
There was at that point (what time? 4pm 5pm? Tuesday) no reason not to 
tell the press.  Issuing a two or three paragraph news release 
summarizing the suicide and the responses by the school would have 
taken no more than a few minutes.
But, was there a reason TO DO SO.  I argue yes.  First of all, there 
is the public's right to know.  Public officials using public money 
doing things in the name of the public--and we should know about it.
Second, rumor control.  Unsubstantiated rumors floating around means 
that the truth can get embellished and distorted.  It builds a climate 
of fear in the community.  Third, copycat problems. Teen suicides can 
lead to others to try suicide as well.  We all need to know when a 
suicide occurred to be extra vigilant about the signs of suicide.
In sum, I think the sheriff's department was very wrong not to release 
information to the public about this on Tuesday.  
BL


>From: Dan Schmidt <schmidt6@Turbonet.com>
>To: "bill london" <bill_london@hotmail.com>
>Subject: Re: Moscow suicide
>Date: Fri, 27 Mar 1998 18:19:36 -0800
>
>At 09:24 AM 4/28/99 PDT, you wrote:
>>Did you hear the rumors floating around Moscow last night (Tuesday 
>>night) about the suicide of a Moscow High student?  John Cronin 
noted 
>>earlier on this list that he heard that same rumor.  I did as well.
>>
>>So, to verify, last night I called the city editor of the Lewiston 
>>Morning Tribune (Diane Pettit).  Yes, she had also heard the rumors, 
>>but was not able to verify this because (as I understand it) nobody 
in 
>>the Latah County Sheriff's Office or Moscow City Police or Moscow 
>>School District was willing to talk about this on the record.  She 
>>assumed that someone would issue a press release today.  So, nothing 
>>about the  suicide (if there was one) appeared in the Tribune today.
>>
>>I don't think that is good enough.  I think the public has a right 
to 
>>know this information and that it is the responsibility of the 
>>police/school to pass that info on as quickly as possible.
>>
>>The public needs to know if it is true or not.  In this era of 
copycat 
>>suicides/violence by students, it is important for teachers/parents 
to 
>> know as soon as possible if there was a suicide.
>>
>>The rumors were flying, and the media was ready to print the truth. 
 I 
>>think the local authorities need to make that truth available to the 
>>media as soon as they know it.  Yes, and if that means establishing 
a 
>>meaningful communication system for contacts after 5pm, then let's 
get 
>>it together.
>>BL
>>
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>>Bill,
>As an elected official and as a person often dealing with this sort 
of
>information I find the "need" to talk to the press a manifestation of 
self
>percieved importance on the part of the press. I agree, rumors are 
often
>malicious and sometimes authoritative information can dispel the true 
and
>sometimes misplaced human curiosity that rumor may represent. Still, 
a
>reasonable delay in conveying this information to "the public" to 
allow for
>family notification and solemnity is proper. The death occurred 
around 1pm.
>Full family notification didn't occur til later in the afternoon. 
Please,
>Bill, we are trying to do our job in a responsible fashion. The 
"news"
>isn't always the first priority.   Dan Schmidt
>


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