By Charlton Stanley, Weekend Contributor
Jackson Attorney
Photo by Jackson, MS police department
As I write this, the news is still coming in, and the full story is far from being told. I will provide breaking news as I hear it, but our intrepid bloggers should consider the comments an Open Thread. If you have solid news to report, please do so, and source the information. Otherwise it is just gossip.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that conspiracy theorists are breaking out the tinfoil hats.
What do we know about the death of Mississippi attorney Mark Mayfield? He lived in Ridgeland, Mississippi, a bedroom suburb just north of the city of Jackson. He was 57 years old. About 9:00 Friday morning, he was found dead in his home of a single gunshot wound. There was a note, but authorities have not revealed the contents. That is not unusual. When I worked in the state that was general policy with investigators across the state. Sometimes suicide notes are poignant, sad, and express intense pain. Other notes have content so gross or inflammatory they could not be printed in a family newspaper. In cases of suicide notes, the families often are reluctant to permit release to the public. In other cases, the note may implicate other people in a crime, or include confidential information. If the latter is the case, release of the content of a suicide note risks compromising an ongoing investigation, especially if sealed indictments are involved. Nothing should be read into it if the note contents are not released and made public.
Mayfield was a major supporter of the Tea Party in Mississippi. They fielded a candidate to run against Senator Thad Cochran in the Republican primary, Chris McDaniel. During the run-up to the primary, several men gained illegal entry into the nursing home where Senator Cochran’s wife was staying. She has Alzheimer’s disease. The actual break-in was actually implemented by a Tea Party blogger named Clayton Kelley, who was arrested. A photo of Mrs. Cochran was posted on a website, presumably Kelley’s. It was taken down a short time later.
Kelley was arrested along with four men, including lawyer Mayfield. The others arrested in the incident were Richard Sager, a high school coach and John Beachman Mary of Hattiesburg. Mary was not taken into custody because of what were described as “extensive medical conditions.”
All the men face felony conspiracy charges. I have not found a complete list of all the charges, but I am sure some would have been added later. For one there is a major HIPAA violation.
My take on this as a professional who has worked in the field for more than forty years, is that Mayfield felt he had no options left. His career as a lawyer was over. He knew he would lose his license to practice and almost certainly was going to be sent to prison. Life as he knew it in the past was ended; that is, after he was released from prison.
There are many professions where one can recover and rebuild after a conviction. Martha Stewart is an example of reinventing oneself. On the other hand, actor Fatty Arbuckle never was able to reestablish a career. Having made a study of suicide over the years, and taught a doctoral level course on Thanatology, there is one overriding element almost all suicides have in common. The subject believes there is literally no way out of the bleak situation they are in. That leads to a feeling of hopelessness. This in turn causes a kind of tunnel vision in which they can envision only one way out.
Setting political issues aside for a moment, I believe this is a time for empathy for Mark Mayfield’s family and loved ones. His criminal defense attorney, Merrida “Buddy” Coxwell is a long time acquaintance of mine, and I believe he expressed it as well as I can, “…he was a client, but more importantly, he was a friend for almost 34 years. My heart is completely broken. This is beyond tragic and the people of this community and state have lost a good man…”
The recriminations can start later. I will say; however, that my contacts in Mississippi tell me the Tea Party regulars have tight sphincter syndrome regarding what Mayfield may have put in that note.
Sources:
—ooOoo–
The views expressed in this posting are the author’s alone and not necessarily those of the blog, the host, or other weekend bloggers. As an open forum, weekend bloggers post independently without pre-approval or review. Content and any displays or art is solely the author’s decision and responsibility.
What could have been the motive ? behind
”some pictures of Cochran’s wife to show her in that nursing home while he is up gallivanting around DC”
Unless she was mooching off medicaid, like Bachmann & Delays adopted children…. i utterly fail at comprehending how having a sickly relative can be spun against anyone?
What am I & every news story out there missing ??
Democrats are enjoying the spectacle the TeaPublicans and Glibertarians are making of themselves, pass the popcorn.
SWM, The first step in solving a problem is admitting you have one. The Queen has been pissing on her leg for several weeks now. Unforced errors. I love seeing the duopoly implode. No Dems or Rep worth a plug nickel. Well then, maybe someone from outside the box will rise up and pimp slap the duopoly. I’m lovin’ this.
Annie, I though one had to be a tea partyer to have the syndrome.
SWM, I think it’s major clinical projection syndrome. Democrats have nothing to be depressed over, unlike Glibertarians, who haven’t got a candidate worth squat.
Hey Saucy, did ya hear? Spinelli says we have Tea Party Derangment Syndrome. I thought he was SO ‘simpatico’ with YOU, LOL!
nick, Does not make sense. Obama will do okay, and if he does not, Joe Biden is waiting in the wings. Obama is not running again, and we have two very qualified, brilliant women as potential candidates on the democratic side. If I were a republican, I would be very depressed about the tea party situation and the lack of a decent candidate for president. Hey, maybe, Palin will run third party. Enjoy thinking that democrats are depressed because we are not. Some are very busy working hard for the fall election. Many here thought we would lose in 2012 but the tea party kept spouting craziness while the democratic phone banks hummed. See Kay Hagan has broken out to a big lead in North Carolina.
John:
Rush Limbaugh did pretty much the same thing in 2008 with his “Operation Chaos” when he encouraged Republicans to cross over and vote in the Democratic primaries for Hillary Clinton to bollix up the primary process.
He specifically targeted those states with open primary laws.
(Tea) Pot, meet kettle.
It seems like every election cycle people become aware of open primaries and how they work. Public educators like to keep the public ignorant of civics. It’s akin to “keep ’em barefoot and pregnant.”
“hear” I’m homonymy today.
Go into a blue collar, hardcore Dem bar in Boston and there is no wondering if the PC term is “person of color, African American, etc.? The only term you will here is “nigger,” and you will here is often and loudly. There are racists in ALL sections of society.
Looks like the clinically depressed Obama Cultist have a multiple diagnosis. The classic signs of TPDS[Tea Party Derangement Syndrome] are on display here.
Texas has an open primary. I cast a vote against Ted Cruz and other tea party candidates in 2012. When you live in a one party state, the only way to have any influence is to vote in the primary of the dominant party.
http://prwatch.org/news/2011/06/10820/false-flag-operation-wisconsins-open-primary
“Once one side develops a weapon, the other side will use it.”
John wrote “Is it not intuitive that primaries should be voted intra-party?”
Only if one forgets that George Washington said in his farewell address: “There is an opinion, that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the Government, and serve to keep alive the spirit of Liberty. This within certain limits is probably true; and in Governments of a Monarchical cast, Patriotism may look with indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular character, in Governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. From their natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose. And, there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be, by force of public opinion, to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.”
Washington warned in the same address “to guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.”
“What nefarious party dreamed up the insidious ‘open primary?'”
SCOTUS affirmed in Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party that open primaries are constitutional by a .. wait for it .. 7-2 vote, with both Roberts and Alito concurring.
http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-713.pdf
“Therein lies the problem – the corruption – the MANIPULATION.”
You must be referring to how Republicans gerrymandered most Congressional districts so Republican candidates are a shoe-in.
It appears that quite a few states have open primaries.
From Fair Vote (The Center for Voting and Democracy):
Congressional and Presidential Primaries: Open, Closed, Semi-Closed, and “Top Two”
Last updated February, 2012.
http://www.fairvote.org/research-and-analysis/presidential-elections/congressional-and-presidential-primaries-open-closed-semi-closed-and-top-two/
Excerpt;
Overview:
This page details information about the main categories of congressional primaries in the United State ( open, closed, semi-closed, and “top two”) and puts each state into one of these categories. We also include information regarding the type of presidential primary or caucus held in each state.
This information is as up-to-date as possible as of May 2012. However, states and parties regularly make changes to their primary or caucus rules. If any of the information below has changed, please email us at info [at] fairvote.org and we will review our information and update it, if warranted.
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/123354958.html?ipad=y
Wisconsin GOP embraced the idea of running fake Democrats in recall elections.
Dredd, ah he was from Texas, I wonder how that went over with MS Tea People? This whole thing is bizarre.
Coffee, is this a serious vote or is it a chess match?
This was NOT a GENERAL election, it was a primary. What, do you imagine, is the nature of a PRIMARY election?
What nefarious party dreamed up the insidious “open primary?” Therein lies the problem – the corruption – the MANIPULATION.
The video that Neo posted up-thread has an interesting twist.
The ABC News employee who is asking the questions asked the guy who wrote the book what surprised him the most.
He said it was the intelligence and educational level of “the Truthers.”
They tended to be well educated and intelligent, not crazy as he had expected.