Posted on 03/14/2008 11:40:41 AM PDT by cajunman
Shortly after her son killed his wife with a .22-caliber pistol Wednesday night in their Tangipahoa Parish apartment, New Orleans School Board member Phyllis Landrieu called police and told them her son was poised to take his own life, authorities said.
Stephen J. Landrieu, a member of the politically powerful Landrieu family of New Orleans, was standing outside his apartment in the town of Independence when officers arrived, but he went inside and locked the door, then committed suicide with a rifle, police said.
The body of Landrieu, 52, the cousin of U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu, was found on the second floor of the East Railroad Avenue building in the small central Tangipahoa town. His wife, Brenda Burke, 50, was dead on the first floor.
Landrieu, who ran a medical supply business, was the nephew of former New Orleans Mayor Moon Landrieu.
Mary Landrieu's spokesman, Adam Sharp, said Thursday: "It is obviously a very traumatic event for the family. They all mourn the loss of their cousin today."
Independence police and Tangipahoa Parish sheriff's deputies went to the couple's apartment after Phyllis Landrieu notified them at 9:46 p.m. that her son had shot and killed his wife and was threatening to kill himself, according to a Sheriff's Office news release. It was unclear where Phyllis Landrieu was at the time.
When Independence police officer T.C. Wells arrived, he saw Stephen Landrieu standing outside the home and tried to speak to him, but Landrieu went inside and locked the door.
The Sheriff's Office tactical unit was called, and its members tried to make contact with Landrieu but had no success, authorities said. Deputies eventually entered the building and discovered the bodies.
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
Very sad. Life can get tough sometimes but this is never the answer. I knew a guy who did this once. It ain’t the answer.
"The poor who grieve are better off than the rich who grieve. The poor at least can cling to the idea that somehow money would have made things better, while the rich know know the truth."
Politics aside, this is a terrible tragedy, and we should be sympathetic to Mary Landrieu and her family.
Sad, sad.........how can things get so bad that one has to resort to suicide but doubly worse, taking an innocent person with you?
Now, how long will it be beforee its blamed somehow on Katrina and the Bush Admin.?
In front of his mother too. Ugly and sad.
Wow, that is horrible! Prayers for her family and those left behind. Suicide is truly a selfish crime, a crime against those left to clean up your mess. By the way, this is coming from a guy who suffered from clinical depression for many years.
I bet Dick Cheney was involved in this.
No mention of party affiliation. Must be an Independent.
Why is his party affiliation relevant? He was in the medical supply business, not politics. His cousin is a Democrat US Senator.
Maybe because it's irrelevant? Don't politicise a private tragedy.
It's not. That's the point. If it were the relative of a Republican, that fact would be prominently stated.
See #11
Very sad, prayers go out to the family.
RIP for the victim. Prayers for the family.
You know how sometimes two or more of the same family will do this?
I can’t understand why anyone who has a family member do this could ever do it. The devastation to the family is incredibly rough.
Condolences to the family.
Very sad. It would cause much less grief if those who wanted to commit murder suicide would do the suicide part first.
Prayers up for the families.
Mary Landrieu got elected with the help of the Crooked Democrat Machine of LA, there were charges of Election Fraud, and Clinton had their puppet Janet Reno send investigators down there who quit in a few days and went back to DC. It was a Reno fraud and a Clinton Fraud from the start.....that is what is important.
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