[doug from upland]

I presume that donating to the Catholic Church means he was Catholic. If he was Catholic, he knows that suicide means eternal damnation. He left behind a wife and two kids, including an 11-year-old daughter.

This was a wealthly man who probably still had some of his wealth despite now owning worthless stock. If he was the whistleblower wanting to do the right thing, I don't know that he saw prison in his future. Money could buy competent legal representation.

Perhaps he was just so filled with shame that he took his own life? It doesn't add up. It sounds, on the surface at least, that he was a man who had a conscience and was trying to do the right thing.

The coroner wasn't Fahmy Malik was it?

[ex-Texan]

I suspect a very professional hit which has now passed several initial tests ....

Forensic firearms experts would test Baxter's hands and wrists and shirt sleeves, etc. for gunshot residue. There will be a distinctive pattern of residue and that pattern would have specific scientific characteristics. The pattern ought to match up with other evidence, including how the weapon was held when it was discharged.

My instincts tell me the wife and the victim's family ought to be requesting a second round of forensic testing to verify and confirm initial conclusions.

If the man was Catholic, or was educated in Church schools or universities, I must resist a finding of 'suicide'.

[onyx]

I've purposely ignored the Enron story, but Baxter's "suicide" cannot be ignored. This smells.

[psjones]

Since he seems to have been a man of conscience, perhaps it's because of his sense of guilt that he killed himself. As for him being Catholic, he wouldn't be the first Catholic to kill himself. He talked about getting bodyguards, I wouldn't be surprised to hear he got phone calls from disgruntled shareholders who threatened him. People who have lost money have been known to kill. Remember that daytrader a couple years ago who went into the daytrading office and started shooting at people? The guy had lost thousands of dollars daytrading and took out his anger on the daytrading center.

[soozer47]

The Houston Chronicle reported that yes, the Baxter's gave quite a bit to a Catholic Church Building Fund BUT emphasized that they were not members of that church. I have not seen an "official" (back of the newspaper) obit either about funeral/memorial services, funeral home, survivors,pallbearers, etc. Everything about the death was on the front page of the paper so maybe they decided not to do the obit and keep the rest private. I have not seen today's paper yet. There might be something in there.

[philman_36]

The coroner wasn't Fahmy Malik was it?
U won funi gi!