Found Deceased NY - Sheila Abdus-Salaam, 65, Harlem, 12 April 2017

[blue22]

"But it was also a life marked by personal tragedy. Her brother committed suicide three years ago around this time of year, two law enforcement sources told CNN on Thursday. Abdus-Salaam, 65, had also been stressed recently at work, the sources said."

""Obviously, we're still waiting for the full investigation, but to the extent that the challenges and the stresses in her life contributed to this, it's a reminder that even the most accomplished people still deal with extraordinary challenges inward, and we don't get to see that," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters Thursday. "

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/13/us/sheila-abdus-salaam-judge-hudson-river/index.html

 

[cnmccarthy]

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/04/...-salaam-found-dead-female-muslim-judge-legacy

This definitely is a tough one. I keep swaying back and forth between murder and suicide.

-left her wallet and phone at home (But was in jogging pants, could have not taken it to jog? Did she like jog/walking?)
-was under tremendous stress and had told others.
-cancer survivor (could she have found out it was back?)
-mom AND sibling committed suicide and recently.
-married multiple times, shows unhappiness or could just mean they were not meant to be together. Too difficult to tell. (Unhappy exes?)

But what gets me is this:
"planning her summer vacation," and looked like she agreed to speak at someone's bar association? Suicidal people normally aren't making future fun plan.
And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House.
-also her staff noticed her missing but not her husband until they let him know? Am I reading that correctly?

This is a tough one and I really hope they (like New York police normally do) investigate this fully.

-all of this is IMO or pulled from the article-

ETA: and she had her metro card. Did she require it to get to the river from her house?

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[wendybtn]

What surprises me is that her autopsy was not done today as a priority with the long weekend ahead. I have no opinion on murder, suicide, or accident.

 

[blue22]

This definitely is a tough one. I keep swaying back and forth between murder and suicide.

-left her wallet and phone at home (But was in jogging pants, could have not taken it to jog? Did she like jog/walking?)
-was under tremendous stress and had told others.
-cancer survivor (could she have found out it was back?)
-mom AND sibling committed suicide and recently.
-married multiple times, shows unhappiness or could just mean they were not meant to be together. Too difficult to tell. (Unhappy exes?)

But what gets me is this:
"planning her summer vacation," and looked like she agreed to speak at someone's bar association? Suicidal people normally aren't making future fun plan.
And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House.
-also her staff noticed her missing but not her husband until they let him know? Am I reading that correctly?

This is a tough one and I really hope they (like New York police normally do) investigate this fully.

-all of this is IMO or pulled from the article-

ETA: and she had her metro card. Did she require it to get to the river from her house?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Suicide can be completely random and impulsive. It is a myth that people who commit suicide, did nit have things they were looking forward to. My sister in law went on a walk with her dog. She tried to hang herself with the leash. She survived and she says there was no rhyme or reason. She was walking and in a moment was overcome. She had many things she was in the process of planning and looking forward to.

I don't know what the case is here. I am no longer surprised by anyone who commits suicide, though. It happens to every type of person, in every circumstance.

 

[cnmccarthy]

Suicide can be completely random and impulsive. It is a myth that people who commit suicide, did nit have things they were looking forward to. My sister in law went on a walk with her dog. She tried to hang herself with the leash. She survived and she says there was no rhyme or reason. She was walking and in a moment was overcome. She had many things she was in the process of planning and looking forward to.

I don't know what the case is here. I am no longer surprised by anyone who commits suicide, though. It happens to every type of person, in every circumstance.

You're right. It's hard for me to not put my own experiences of trying when I was younger, not on meds, and severely depressed as a definition of all types of suicides as depression manifests differently in different people. [emoji17] I am sorry she went through that but very glad she survived!

So most of what I've read sadly points to suicide. The metro card stands out for me though. I don't know much about NYC but does anyone know if she would have to take the metro to get to where they found her or to the river in general? Are there security cameras on the metro?
I guess she could have still had the metro card in her pocket from a previous outing?




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[cnmccarthy]

What surprises me is that her autopsy was not done today as a priority with the long weekend ahead. I have no opinion on murder, suicide, or accident.

That definitely is strange.


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[Snoopster]

This definitely is a tough one. I keep swaying back and forth between murder and suicide.

-left her wallet and phone at home (But was in jogging pants, could have not taken it to jog? Did she like jog/walking?)
-was under tremendous stress and had told others.
-cancer survivor (could she have found out it was back?)
-mom AND sibling committed suicide and recently.
-married multiple times, shows unhappiness or could just mean they were not meant to be together. Too difficult to tell. (Unhappy exes?)

But what gets me is this:
"planning her summer vacation," and looked like she agreed to speak at someone's bar association? Suicidal people normally aren't making future fun plan.
And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House.
-also her staff noticed her missing but not her husband until they let him know? Am I reading that correctly?

This is a tough one and I really hope they (like New York police normally do) investigate this fully.

-all of this is IMO or pulled from the article-

ETA: and she had her metro card. Did she require it to get to the river from her house?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you cnmccarthy for laying this out like this. In my brain I'm leaning toward suicide, however I'm not quite ready to completely go there in my heart.

I agree with others that people who commit suicide don't always completely stop making plans.

Hugs to anyone here who has struggled with depression.

 

[DeDee]

DeDee, do you have a link to that quote? Thanks.

The excerpt that I quoted came from the OP.

http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/...ustice-abdus-salaam-found-dead-in-hudson/amp/

 

[blue22]

What surprises me is that her autopsy was not done today as a priority with the long weekend ahead. I have no opinion on murder, suicide, or accident.

Her autopsy was conducted.

"The Medical Examiner’s office announced the cause and manner of the judge’s death required additional investigation. An autopsy was conducted Thursday."

Also from the link:

" A pioneering state judge found floating in the Hudson River likely took her own life after a recent battle with depression, a police source said Thursday.

State Court of Appeals Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam began taking medication for her darkening moods just a few weeks before her apparent suicide, a well-placed court source told the Daily News.

Police investigating the judge’s disappearance found her meds, according to the court source."

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...am-committed-suicide-police-article-1.3051425

 

[DeDee]

This definitely is a tough one. I keep swaying back and forth between murder and suicide.

-left her wallet and phone at home (But was in jogging pants, could have not taken it to jog? Did she like jog/walking?)
-was under tremendous stress and had told others.
-cancer survivor (could she have found out it was back?)
-mom AND sibling committed suicide and recently.
-married multiple times, shows unhappiness or could just mean they were not meant to be together. Too difficult to tell. (Unhappy exes?)

But what gets me is this:
"planning her summer vacation," and looked like she agreed to speak at someone's bar association? Suicidal people normally aren't making future fun plan.
And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House.
-also her staff noticed her missing but not her husband until they let him know? Am I reading that correctly?

This is a tough one and I really hope they (like New York police normally do) investigate this fully.

-all of this is IMO or pulled from the article-

ETA: and she had her metro card. Did she require it to get to the river from her house?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

"And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House."

I am not sure that I understand these comments so perhaps you will expound upon them for clarity. As it stands, it appears, from the wording, that there is an inference the death of a Judge may be connected to the current WH administration.

 

[TenaciousTBacon]

This is really sad. I wish she had sought help.

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[J. J. in Phila]

One thing that I learned in looking at some missing persons' cases, is that a disposition both depression and depression leading to suicide can be genetic.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2011/nov/14/gene-raises-suicide-risk

 

[cnmccarthy]

"And she was powerful, Muslim, and black. Along with the going against corporations and siding with the people. And the current administration in the White House."

I am not sure that I understand these comments so perhaps you will expound upon them for clarity. As it stands, it appears, from the wording, that there is an inference the death of a Judge may be connected to the current WH administration.

I apologize! I was in the middle of cooking and was only half looking it the screen when I was typing. What I meant was the following:
-a lot of racial and religious tensions have escalated because of the current situation in the White House. In no way am I wanting to start a political debate by stating this as we all have our own opinions on the people in office!
-Seeing as she is black, Muslim, and a female in power there is the slight possibility of someone taking it upon themselves to remove her from that position because of ideologies they have or because she had cost major corporations a lot of money through rulings she had in a court battle. (I don't know enough about her work to say that this is highly plausible but it is possible). I'm reminded of the woman who was gunned down by an assassin recently because of her work but for the life of me I can't remember her name or what she did?
-I feel like all of this sounds like rambling [emoji15] I can never form coherent thoughts late at night when I've been studying all day. I am in the middle of battling Neurologic Lyme Disease and it messes with my words! All of this made sense in my head but now when I read it, it sounds like gibberish. [emoji24]🤦🏼*♀️[emoji52]
Sorry [emoji17]



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[kileyray]

State Court of Appeals Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam began taking medication for her darkening moods just a few weeks before her apparent suicide, a well-placed court source told the Daily News.

Police investigating the judge’s disappearance found her meds, according to the court source."

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...am-committed-suicide-police-article-1.3051425

When I started taking anti depressants I recall there being a potential increase in the risk of suicide. Perhaps this was a contributing factor if she had just recently started taking medication.

 

[nancydrew71]

Her autopsy was conducted.

"The Medical Examiner’s office announced the cause and manner of the judge’s death required additional investigation. An autopsy was conducted Thursday."

Also from the link:

" A pioneering state judge found floating in the Hudson River likely took her own life after a recent battle with depression, a police source said Thursday.

State Court of Appeals Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam began taking medication for her darkening moods just a few weeks before her apparent suicide, a well-placed court source told the Daily News.

Police investigating the judge’s disappearance found her meds, according to the court source."

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...am-committed-suicide-police-article-1.3051425

The SSRI class of anti-depressants give you suicidal thoughts, The info even comes with it. There are many lawsuits against the pharm company because of people committing suicide while on these. I wish they were taken off the market, but who's going to listen to me. The latest info is you get too much serotonin in your brain and it causes you to commit suicide or commit violent acts. If she was on these, this would definitely be a suicide IMO

 

[jlparker]

I'm pleased to find a discussion of this case here. What a terrible loss to the U.S. legal system; she had a brilliant mind. Since I read the first reports, I've had a feeling that there's something more to the Judge's death than meets the eye. Of course, that's true in any homicide, I'm sure. Still, the Judge's death raises so many questions. Whatever the ultimate ruling on the cause, I think there is much more to this case than what we know at present. I wonder what decisions she had written most recently. Is it possible her death had something to do with a case she heard? Directly or indirectly? I'm hesitant to pose many of the questions I have without more information from the investigation.
Also, in case this hasn't been clarified, Judge Abdus-Salaam was not Muslim, according to a spokesman for the Court of Appeals (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/...udge-hudson-river-committed-suicide.html?_r=0) Not that faith necessarily has any bearing on the decision to take one's own life, but the information is relevant.

 

[flourish]

The SSRI class of anti-depressants give you suicidal thoughts, The info even comes with it. There are many lawsuits against the pharm company because of people committing suicide while on these. I wish they were taken off the market, but who's going to listen to me. The latest info is you get too much serotonin in your brain and it causes you to commit suicide or commit violent acts. If she was on these, this would definitely be a suicide IMO

It can. It can also help alleviate depression and the suicidal thoughts which may come with it. Overall, I think many psychotropic medications are very helpful. I likely wouldn't be writing this post if I'd lived this same life before their advent. Just because it CAN cause issues in some people doesn't mean it's typically likely to in general. No medication is without unwanted effects. IMO

 

[katydid23]

I did not think it was suicide. But I did not know about the suicides of her brother and her mother. Those are huge red flags for me. In my experience, when someone has a close family member commit suicide, that greatly increases their own urges to follow in those tragic footsteps.



This leans me more towards that sad possibility now.

 

[blue22]

I did not think it was suicide. But I did not know about the suicides of her brother and her mother. Those are huge red flags for me. In my experience, when someone has a close family member commit suicide, that greatly increases their own urges to follow in those tragic footsteps.



This leans me more towards that sad possibility now.

I agree. The timing especially gives me pause.

"The judge, 65, had recently told friends and a doctor that she was suffering from stress. And tragedy had followed her closely: On Easter in 2012, her mother committed suicide at age 92, according to two law enforcement officials. Two years later, around the same holiday, her brother shot himself to death, the officials said."

 

[blue22]

This link is for the quote above. My phone won't let me click on edit.

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/04/...ork-judge-hudson-river-committed-suicide.html