Foreclosure Threat Drives Some to Suicide
The foreclosure crisis in Philadelphia is now becoming a matter of life and death. In the past month, two homeowners took their own lives before sheriff's deputies arrived to tell them that they were being evicted, reports CBS Station KYW-TV.
On March 5, deputies arriving to post an eviction notice on Lynda Clark's South Philadelphia home found she had hanged herself.
"It's devastating for everyone. We're not even family members and it's just devastating to us," Captain Albert Innaurato of the Philadelphia Sheriff's Office said.
Less than three weeks later, owner Gregory Bellows shot and killed himself shortly before deputies arrived to evict him from his Roxborough home.
Court records show Clark, whose debt topped $100,000, lost her home at a sheriff's sale last October. Bellows, owing more than $240,000, had his home sold at a sheriff's sale in 2008.
While the numbers are clear, it most likely will never be known when the homeowners' huge debts turned into despair.
"They really don't understand that it's imminent, it's going to happen. Take some sort of proactive steps to stop it from happening," foreclosure prevention director Darrel K. Stewart said.
The Philadelphia Sheriff's Office wants those facing crises to know that help is available. They say that while eviction is heartbreaking, it does not have to end in tragedy.
"They have to learn from day one to be on top of it, there's a lot of agencies and a lot of programs in place that can help them," Innaurato said.
KYW On March 5, deputies arriving to post an eviction notice on Lynda Clark's South Philadelphia home found she had hanged herself.
"It's devastating for everyone. We're not even family members and it's just devastating to us," Captain Albert Innaurato of the Philadelphia Sheriff's Office said.
Less than three weeks later, owner Gregory Bellows shot and killed himself shortly before deputies arrived to evict him from his Roxborough home.
Court records show Clark, whose debt topped $100,000, lost her home at a sheriff's sale last October. Bellows, owing more than $240,000, had his home sold at a sheriff's sale in 2008.
While the numbers are clear, it most likely will never be known when the homeowners' huge debts turned into despair.
"They really don't understand that it's imminent, it's going to happen. Take some sort of proactive steps to stop it from happening," foreclosure prevention director Darrel K. Stewart said.
The Philadelphia Sheriff's Office wants those facing crises to know that help is available. They say that while eviction is heartbreaking, it does not have to end in tragedy.
"They have to learn from day one to be on top of it, there's a lot of agencies and a lot of programs in place that can help them," Innaurato said.
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- I wish that the people who are hired to make collections calls and to repossess assets were given a small amount of training so they could recognize signs that someone might be depressed and contemplating suicide. It would not be expensive or difficult to train such employees with the warning signs and to arm them with resources so that if they sense someone might be suicidal they could refer them to a non-profit mental health agency or support group. It would be the humane thing to do.
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- That is going to become very common with the elderly, as well, as the government leaves the elderly with no place to turn.
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