TX - David Tuck & Keith Turner for beating, sodomizing 16yo, Spring, 2006

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Just read about this this morning. So Sad! I can not evewn imagine how much pain this boy was in. I hope that he is at peace now.
 
I remember reading a thread about his attack here when it happened but could not find it....

HOUSTON (AP) — As horrific and painful as the past year had been for David Ritcheson, his future seemed brighter -- a chance to attend college for free, to devote his life to public service and to leave behind a troubled past.
The past 15 months of Ritcheson's life were focused on recovering physically and emotionally from a brutal attack in which he was beaten unconscious and sodomized with a plastic pole by a man shouting "White Power!"
He leaped to his death in the Gulf of Mexico from an upper deck of a Carnival Cruise ship on Sunday morning, according to several witnesses. Although his family has declined to speak publicly about the death, the family's attorney scheduled a news conference for Tuesday.
Ritcheson had endured more than two dozen painful surgeries and relied on a colostomy bag. Perhaps worse, virtually everyone he met knew who he was and what had happened to him that terrifying night in April 2006.
But many who knew him say he appeared to have emerged from that time with a newfound clarity. Thanks to the Anti-Defamation League, he had a full scholarship to the college of his choice. Like many 18-year-olds, he hadn't yet decided on a career path, but thought he wanted to help prevent attacks like the one he had endured.
Story continues
http://www.courttv.com/news/2007/0703/suicide_ap.html
 
I just saw this on fox news. Unbelievable. I remember clearly the attack this boy survived. How horrible that he felt he had no other choice to end his pain. Friggin losers need to die in jail.
 
My prayers to his family.
I wish those two punks that did this to him could have the death penalty tacked on to their sentences for his suicide also.
 
I can't get this young man out of my head. I haven't been inside a church in over 25 years. Today I went to St. Josephs, to light candles for him and SeahorseLadyDi's son. Both losses touched me deeply. I just didn't know what else to do. :(
 
SadieMae said:
I can't get this young man out of my head. I haven't been inside a church in over 25 years. Today I went to St. Josephs, to light candles for him and SeahorseLadyDi's son. Both losses touched me deeply. I just didn't know what else to do. :(
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SadieMae, that was such a nice gesture...:blowkiss:

I'm sure St. Joseph hopes you felt comforted.
 
Texana said:
Here's the passengers' story of the event:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4939684.html

His parents apparently were not on the cruise with him, which concerns me. Who was he with?
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He was with the family of friends, he was 18, he was not CHILD - legally an adult - just graduated from HS. His family could not be everywhere with him forever. He had repeatedly refused counseling and had undergone his like 47th surgery 3 mos ago. He covered up and hid his pain, pretended nothing was wrong. Obviously, there was a lot wrong. So sad.....

"Ritcheson had paid for the cruise trip himself, joining two friends and one of the young men's parents on the vessel."
 
FlowerChild said:
He was with the family of friends, he was 18, he was not CHILD - legally an adult - just graduated from HS. His family could not be everywhere with him forever. He had repeatedly refused counseling and had undergone his like 47th surgery 3 mos ago. He covered up and hid his pain, pretended nothing was wrong. Obviously, there was a lot wrong. So sad.....

"Ritcheson had paid for the cruise trip himself, joining two friends and one of the young men's parents on the vessel."
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I know. But he was 18, not 28. He had been through so much the past two years--30 surgeries to date. He didn't have any psychiatric care after such a horrific experience (think of the self-blame that any rape victim goes through, the anger, and for him, the permanent physical issues) and he was so much more fragile emotionally than he let on to anyone else, obviously.

I'm sure his family thought it would be a fun experience for him.

I just wish we could re-write the ending of this story for him. He deserved more than this.
 
Damn, this is shocking.

This just doesn't make any sense since he had so much support and love around him and he did fully recover from his injuries, right?

I don't see what he meant by always being identified as the "kid" since in a huge city like Houston he could always meet anonymous people who wouldn't know who he is or if he went away to college.

Did he leave a suicide note or give any explanation AT ALL??
 
I don't think there's any way to fully recover from this - psychologically, knowing people exist who can and will do that to you.

But physically, he had a colostomy bag, and I'm sure other issues.

They killed him - it just took awhile.
 
Details said:
I don't think there's any way to fully recover from this - psychologically, knowing people exist who can and will do that to you.

But physically, he had a colostomy bag, and I'm sure other issues.

They killed him - it just took awhile.
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WHOA! Why did he need a colostomy bag??
 
May he finally be in peace. His very sad, short life was filled with heartache.... R.I.P..
 
I figured that, really.... I mean he was into drugs before he got so brutally attacked... having to deal with what happened, it doesn't surprise me he turned back to drugs. I agree with what this one guy says in the article, that the drugs probably magnified his internal demons (paraphrased).
 
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