From The Oregonian, September 12, 2010 Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Gross was a nearly perfect soldier. Before he went to Iraq in 2004, he sewed a canvas kit for any tools he’d need. He kept a meticulous platoon diary of miles driven, missions completed, weapons destroyed. Gross was making detailed plans for a second Iraq […]
Oregon’s suicide rate is 35 percent higher than the national average. The rate is 15.2 suicides per 100,000 people compared to the national rate of 11.3 per 100,000. After decreasing in the 1990s, suicide rates have been increasing significantly since 2000, according to a new report, “Suicides in Oregon: Trends and Risk Factors,” from Oregon […]
From OPB.org, December 18, 2008 LISTEN – County Changes Policy Of Sending Juveniles To Adult Jails Multnomah County Commissioners voted Thursday to stop sending juveniles to adult jails. Instances of suicide and sexual abuse around the nation are prompting many jurisdictions to make similar changes. With the wave of ‘get-tough-on-crime’ legislation in the 1990s, teenagers […]
Last week the Oregonian published a front page story claiming a “spike” in suicide rates. The story, Portland Suicides Spike, asserts county mental health bureaucrats ‘suspect’ the current economic crisis has caused an increase in area suicides. A graphic attached to the story shows the number of suicides in Multnomah County may be trending up. […]
Deputy shoots teen who brandished assault rifle From KATU.com, January 2, 2007 Police: Shot boy was suicidal From The Oregonian of Jan. 3, 2007 The 14-year-old pointed a semiautomatic rifle at a deputy, who opened fire, injuring him, Washington County officials say Washington County sheriff’s investigators say a 14-year-old boy who was shot by a […]
From The Oregonian, December 30, 2002 In the end, all Randy Wike could find to love about life was his 3-year-old son and Ice House beer — he drank a case a day to mute the symptoms of a mental illness that had debilitated him since he was a teenager. By age 30, it no […]
From The Oregonian, May 2, 1999. Not available elsewhere online. They came to bear witness for lost loved ones, to speak out despite the grief and pain, to break through the guilt and shame that keeps mental illness and suicide in the shadows. They came to celebrate the short life and mourn the death of […]
From The Oregonian, December 15, 1988 Javier Valdez, a 17-year-old freshman at Reed College, described as his family’s “bright young hope,” killed himself last week rather than face academic failure. His body was discovered Monday by a friend concerned that he had not emerged from his dormitory room, said Terry Sparks, deputy medical examiner for […]
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