The Wages of Deception

December 11, 2012 1:33 AM

For fallen dean, a quick descent to a grisly end
posted by msalt (14 comments total)

I remember when I read about this in Dean Magazine.
posted by cthuljew at 1:42 AM on December 11, 2012 [1 favorite]

aw, I thought this would be about Ween, but then I realized it would say 'Gene'.
posted by mannequito at 1:51 AM on December 11, 2012

Less than 24 hours after testifying, Dr. Chang killed herself — an act of grisly determination. She started a fire in a bedroom fireplace and closed the flue. When death did not come quickly enough, she went downstairs to the kitchen and turned on the gas. For extra measure, she slit her wrists.

Stereo speaker wire was her final weapon of choice. She took a length of it back upstairs, lowered an attic ladder and hanged herself from it.

Yes, obviously a victim of suicide.
posted by Yowser at 1:56 AM on December 11, 2012

Let's not jump to conclusions...
posted by msalt at 1:58 AM on December 11, 2012 [1 favorite]

Just some dark humour. I can't think of a more horrible way to try to commit suicide than buring yourself up, though.
posted by Yowser at 1:59 AM on December 11, 2012

Aaand I see I misread the part about starting a fire.
posted by Yowser at 2:01 AM on December 11, 2012

Agreed, though. Massive burns would be a horrible way to go. Or stay.
posted by msalt at 2:08 AM on December 11, 2012

Jesus Christ, how could this possibly get uglier

"Indeed, in her handwritten notes, she wrote that she once had an intimate relationship with Father Cahill that included another woman employed by St. John’s. In addition to the sexual liaisons, Dr. Chang wrote that Father Cahill took her to the racetrack and to Atlantic City, usually removing his clerical garb “when we go out to play.”

Joseph Oliva, the general counsel for St. John’s, noted that Dr. Chang never mentioned the alleged relationship with Father Cahill, who died in 2003, in her testimony nor in any of several discussions that they had had about her tenure at the university. “The university conducted a search of its records and has not found any information to support this uncorroborated allegation,” Mr. Oliva added."

Oh for fucks sake...
posted by Blasdelb at 2:30 AM on December 11, 2012

Right. Because a priest who's president of a Catholic university sleeping with a much younger subordinate is something likely to be contained in his university personnel file.
posted by 1adam12 at 2:34 AM on December 11, 2012 [3 favorites]

"Dr. Chang wrote of her love for her son in her suicide note, and expressed bitterness toward St. John’s for abandoning her. “She made repeated references to the fact that she worked there for 30 years,” a law-enforcement official said."

Publishing parts of suicide notes is a pretty complex moral question.

"In death, on her bathroom floor, Dr. Chang’s face looked as if she were napping before her morning-court appearance. She wore a silky floral blouse paired with a black jacket. Her hair was neatly coifed. Her lipstick and rouge looked freshly applied, not at all smudged. There was barely a hint of anything askew, save for the shiny wire coiled around her throat like a necklace."

Publishing that is not; WTF New York Times? How is that over lurid bullshit with a deeply misogynistic perspective even conceivably ok to put in print?
posted by Blasdelb at 2:35 AM on December 11, 2012 [5 favorites]

Are we really making jokes about this?
I'm all for gallows humour , and tastless jokes... but... you know, it's suicide.
posted by Mezentian at 2:46 AM on December 11, 2012 [3 favorites]

She was probably trying to suffocate herself, or die from CO poisoning, with the fire, not burn herself up.
posted by thelonius at 2:50 AM on December 11, 2012

Why do I want that tagline on my life?
posted by telstar at 2:54 AM on December 11, 2012

"For fallen dean, a quick descent to a grisly end"

I thought this was a clue for a cryptic crossword, only missing the (6,7) bit at the end.
posted by ZipRibbons at 3:12 AM on December 11, 2012 [1 favorite]