On this day 24 years ago, Pennsylvania State Treasurer R. Budd Dwyer publicly committed suicide during a press conference. He was to be sentenced the next day on a number of bribery convictions.
Dwyer's troubles began earlier in the decade, when the state of Pensilvania realized its employees were paying too much in FICA taxes. They decided to auction a contract to an accounting firm to calculate how much money was owed each worker. A California-based firm, Computer Technology Associates, won the $4.6 million dollar deal. The owner used connections he had with the locals and bribes to influence the decision. The governor was notified of the activities through an anonymous memo.
An investigation began immediately. Dwyer was indicted to have accepted a kickback of $300,000 (to be received at a later date) if he would use his position to sway the contract towards CTA. Dwyer maintained his innocence, and insisted that he'd been framed. He refused a plea bargain, which would have him serve a maximum of five years for one charge of bribery. However, this would have required him to resign from his post (PA law allowed officials to continue serving until after being sentenced) and could have devastating consequences for his family (who'd spent most of their money on legal defenses).
Dwyer faced a maximum of 55 years in jail and $300,000 in fines. At his trial, the prosecution refused to name so called co-conspirators who had leveled evidence against him. He was convicted on January 21 and immediately petitioned for pardon by President Reagan.
The next day, he called a press conference, during which he read a speech. He was visibly agitated and nervous. The document talked about his dissatisfaction with recent events, the judge presiding over his trial and the justice system as a whole. He also announced plans to continue fighting despite the odds. However, halfway through the speech, he suddenly called for three of his aides. They each received an envelope: one with a suicide note to his wife, another with organ donor paperwork, and the third with a letter to the new governor Bob Casey, who had been sworn in two days earlier.
At this instant, Dwyer pulled out a S&W .357 magnum and shot himself in the head.
The event shocked and horrified Americans. Uncensored footage of the shooting was aired by only two of the five stations that recorded it.
However, since he died while technically still in office, Dwyer's widow, Joanne received survivor benefits totaling $1.28 million dollars. A spokesman for the family suggested that this may have been his true reason. Sadly, the planned final words of his speech "Please don't let the sacrifice of my life be in vain" were unfulfilled. Rather than reopen the case and critique the legal system, the subject of debate was "Should we let such graphic footage air on TV?"
Joanne moved to Arizona with her children and lived there until her own death in 2009. She never remarried.
