The son of a former New York judge allegedly bludgeoned his mother to death before killing himself by jumping off the 16th floor, police said.
Doug Solomon, 26, hit his mother Diane Gallagher, 65, with a piece of furniture at their family home in Manhattan’s Upper East Side, a senior police official said on Tuesday, according to several media reports.
He then jumped out of the building.
When police reached the scene, they found Solomon “unconscious and unresponsive” with trauma to the body.
Officials said injuries were consistent with falling from a height.
Residents said they heard loud screaming reportedly at the time Doug fell from the 16th floor.
“It was the loudest thud. At first I thought it was an air conditioning unit,” a resident of the building, who did not want to be named, was quoted as saying to The New York Post.
Another resident said they heard yelling before Solomon’s fall.
“I heard a bunch of voices. I thought it was construction workers arguing,” the resident said.
“I thought it was just people angry with each other.”
A resident named Martine, who declined to share her last name, said she and Gallagher had been friends for years and added that she was heartbroken over her death.
“She’s just one of the most amazing people. Bright, articulate, dancer,” the 79-year-old said.
Doug’s father Charles Solomon, a former judge at the New York Supreme Court, had retired in 2017 after three decades on the bench.
During his time in court, Mr Solomon heard a slew of high profile cases, including Sean “P-Diddy” Combs’s 2001 nightclub shooting trial and a case involving former New York governor Elliot Spitzer and one of his mistresses.
He retired from the court after a bout with cancer. Most recently, he worked at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, showed court records.
Police are investigating Solomon and his mother’s deaths as murder-suicides though the family has no history of domestic violence or mental health issues, reported NBC New York.
If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
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