Kidnapper and rapist Ariel Castro was monitored at “staggered” intervals, not on suicide watch.
For holding three women captive and subjecting them to unimaginable horrors, Ariel Castro was sentenced to 1,000 years in prison. But he fulfilled just one month of that sentence. At 9:20pm last night, Ohio Bureau of Prisons officials found Ariel Castro hanged in his cell.
Although some reports say otherwise, CNN’s Pamela Brown recently reported that Castro was not on suicide watch as he was when he first entered the prison.
NBC News reports that:
“He had been housed in protective custody, which means he was in a cell by himself, and guards make rounds every 30 minutes at staggered intervals, according to the Ohio Bureau of Prisons.”
According to the Ohio Bureau of Corrections, a “thorough review of this incident is underway and more information can be provided as it becomes available pending the status of the investigation.”
The Chicago Tribune reports that JoEllen Smith, spokeswoman for the Rehabilitation and Correction Department, said that Castro, 53, was first transferred to a local hospital and pronounced dead about 90 minutes later.
The Tribune also reiterated this point:
“Cuyahoga County prosecutor Tim McGinty acknowledged after Castro’s sentencing that a suicide note and confession written by Castro was found by authorities at his residence when they searched his home following his arrest in May.”
–Photo: AP
A sociopath. One can only hope he felt remorse or guilt about what he did at some point. Perhaps he couldn’t bear the thought of what he had done or maybe it was a more self-serving decision: a desire to control and not have to deal with “the system” so he took his out on his terms, a final form of control. Maybe he was afraid of the day he would be released the general population (and with good reason). Awful. Sickening. My heart goes out to his victims.
Maybe he felt dead inside already—it is difficult to understand what inspired such cruel acts…
A final act of control after landing in a situation where control was no longer his?
An act of cowardice?
An act of definance to subterfuge the healing processes of the victims?
A last ditch effort to deny his victims justice?
Who knows what was running through this guys head.
Yes; probably; who knows; who knows. Is a lifetime of suffering of the aggressor really more conducive to the healing of his vicitims than his death? He certainly denied them the likely pleasant feeling of retribution, but at the same time granted them the relief of removing himself forever from the present and future and into the past. Isn’t that why some people want the death penalty? Moreover, I doubt he enjoyed his last moments alive and, if there were an afterlife, he’d probably have a special reserved place in hell. Not a bad outcome, I’d say. Less burden on… Read more »
Is a lifetime of suffering of the aggressor really more conducive to the healing of his vicitims than his death? I think some may say yes to that on the grounds that, in this case, his death was by his own hands. If he were to suffer in prison (which would be something beyond his control) then he could be held up as an example of justice at hand. A beacon to let the survivors know that he didn’t get away with it. (And mind you by “suffer in prison” I don’t mean being assaulted, just serving his time while… Read more »
And deep heartfelt sympathy pours out across the internet. Not so much.