Cameron Dabaghi ID'd As Empire State Building Jumper: Yale Student Commits Suicide From Observation Deck

NEW YORK — A Yale University junior left a suicide note in his dorm room before heading to New York, where he apparently plunged to his death by jumping from the Empire State Building, police said Wednesday.

Cameron Dabaghi, 21, from Austin, Texas, jumped from the 86th floor observation deck Tuesday during evening rush hour. His note said he was sorry and he would be jumping from either the George Washington Bridge over the Hudson River in upper Manhattan, or the Empire State building, police said.

There were seven other people on the observation deck at the same time, and one person tried to talk to the jumper as he climbed over the barrier, but was unsuccessful.

Dabaghi was dead when rescue workers arrived at the 102-story skyscraper shortly before 6:30 p.m. He was a student in Berkeley College, majoring in East Asian studies. The college dean was meeting with students Wednesday, and counselors were available at the university to anyone who needed them.

"Yale is extending support to Cameron's family, roommates and friends at this most difficult time," the university said in a statement.

The Empire State Building is the third-tallest building in the United States. More than 30 people have committed suicide at the building since it opened in 1931. The most recent one occurred in January 2009, when a 54-year-old woman died after jumping from the 39th floor and landing on the 25th floor.

The skyscraper reaches 1,454 feet to the top of its lightning rod.

(This version CORRECTS that the most recent suicide was January 2009, instead of 2006.)

Comments

[FCKED]

04:00 PM on 04/02/2010

Lots of people say it was selfish to for him to commit suicide. Would you if you could condemn him? punish him? my bad I thought this was about understanding the motivations of someone who commits suicide not a morality lecture

[NoComment9]

02:16 PM on 04/02/2010

As a New Yorker who lives in Manhattan, all I can say is I would have compassion for the kid if he wasn't so selfish in his method. Our sidewalks are pedestrian streets. He easily could have killed someone else on landing. And that is not to mention the trauma he surely inflicted on those passerbys who he didn't land on.

His act is just short of those who commit murder-suicide. Thank the heavens he didn't inflict the tragedy of killing a passerby on an innocent family. It was just luck he didn't at that hour of the day.

[christian55]

12:06 AM on 04/05/2010

let this poor soul rest in peace,do not make ugly comments about "been selfish" ,out of love for his restless saul, feel compassion for him,something inside must have tortured him real bad to do something so drastic and I'm sure he did not think about the possibility of hurting others, pray for him and his family, his family that is suffering so much enough already and probably will never be able to forget and find peace.
Don't judge ,only the Lord can !

[Gpiano88]

11:42 AM on 04/02/2010

I have experienced clinical depression in my life at a time when I was finding out that I finally had to come to grips with my childhood experiences. An abusive stepfather and a mother in denial, I was subject to mental, physical and emotional torture. At the same time I realized I had a gift that would see me through my tempestuous life. I always had the ability to stave off major disability because of my talents. There came a time when I had to find out why I had questions without answers. I give you this short background to show that when everything starts closing in and you just can't manage it yourself, the key is to get evaluated by professionals to determine the root cause. Depression is multi-faceted. It presents in different ways. There is the emotional and physical causes and then there is the genetic predisposition based on youtr family history. The big drawback is when people in your family are non-supportive or in denial themselves about their issues. In the final analysis, one is truly on their own. For some, that is how it always was.

[FCKED]

11:22 AM on 04/02/2010

All these people saying suicide is selfish, is that always true? Some live miserable lives What if you have no one who you will effect by suicide that is no friends family etc. maybe some people would not be missed at all is it still selfish? For some depression is not a temporary problem you could argue that its selfless as your making room for someone else and if you don't have relations with other people (something people need) what is the point in continuing to live that being said you should never leave a mess. peace

[KJ-CHICAGO]

10:27 AM on 04/02/2010

Many comments here do not understand the difference between being depressed and being Clinically Depressed. People are in this thought pattern because of such overwhelming pain it feels like it has to end NOW. How many lived years because they didn't want to hurt anyone, until the time when that does not enter in anymore, all they felt was "I HAVE TO ESCAPE NOW." It's hard to keep smiling and saying you are fine when you are not. For me the answer has been proper medication and a wonderful psychotherapist I talk to once a week. Most insurance offers 10-20 therapy visits a year, laughable if not so tragic. I pay myself and the therapy is one-fourth my income, but what of those who don't have that money, or services available, or get the wrong meds - a psychiatrist willing to try different meds until one works. Don't expect your family doctor to evaluate these things, they are not trained for it or have the time. To those who think "things will get better" is good advise, it is not. The person with the clinical illness knows things will get worse again too. Don't say much at all, just listen in a calm way so they feel free to talk without fear of police or an ambulance showing up. Lastly, please remember to be kind to or smile at everyone you see. You never know how much that can mean, to stranger or friend.

[bogan]

08:01 AM on 04/02/2010

I know we are all looking for answers, but I fear that there has been an over prescription of antidepressants. http://anticharisma.com/Zeitgeist_Purple_pills_medicated_teens_mass_marketing_pharmaceutical_new_cultural_phenomenon.html

If its clinical then yes, but if its because you've had a divorce, then NO NO NO! And I fear that on the basis of comissions, too many doctors are willing to call someon's life event/s depression a clinical depressionn so as to justify overprescription = more profits for doctors and pharmaceutical share holders, with the new patients now on going, life long pill consumption and expenditure.

[Sixfoot]

10:28 AM on 04/06/2010

I agree with your comments when you differentiate between clinical depression and situational depression. However, I take issue with the rest of your posting. First of all, antidepressants prescribed at the general practicioner level are rarely prescribed for indefinite periods of time and most physicians require that patients also enter into psychotherapy in conjunction with them. The MD's are getting paid for an office visit every three to four months-depending on their state, hardly raking in the big money).

The pharmaceutical system in this country is severly flawed. The new health care reforms don't address cost. One reason drugs are so expensive is that a company is required to patent the drug before it goes through the FDA approval process. The clock is ticking on the patent all the while that the drug is waiting to be approved. So if the FDA sits on the drug for a number of years....then the drug company is forced to price the drug to make up for the years it languished in the system. The new reforms did nothing to address this.

Also another area of cost savings was totally ignored. Pharmacies are guilty of extreme mark ups of drugs. Profit margins of 300-400% are common. Every time a pharmacy provides generic drugs at 4-6 dollars, that same pharmacy has marked up the branded drugs to cover the costs. The reforms did nothing to address this abuse.

[ekorea]

07:47 AM on 04/02/2010

If you haven't been on the edge of suicide, or you haven't fought mental illness, then you can't fully imagine the kind of pain this boy was going through. If you have been suicidal, and didn't take the final step, then be grateful that your mental powers were strong enough to save you. As someone who resisted taking anti-depressants because I thought I had to solve the 'problem', not just treat the 'symptoms', I feel I know whereof I speak. After decades of spending my brilliant energy on staying alive, I decided that my brilliance could be put to better use. After many trials and errors, I've finally found the right combination of medicines that lets me live a 'normal' life.

Please don't judge suicides through a prism of mental clarity or emotional well-being. That's not the world these people inhabit.

[plugnpillai]

10:03 AM on 04/02/2010

Well said. And glad you are here.

[ophelia turns blue]

10:11 AM on 04/02/2010

Fanned.

[KCM7]

11:15 PM on 04/01/2010

Moderator,

Why are you censoring my posts?

[KCM7]

11:12 PM on 04/01/2010

Greg Evans wrote

"Wonder if he considered that he could have killed innocent bystanders by jumping from the building? I don't think we'd be feeling so sympathetic if he'd landed on a kid or caused a fatal car wreck. Suicide is always selfish; this was thoughtless as well."

Greg please enlighten us with your brilliance. Share your battle with this debilitating condition.
If you haven't suffered with this condition you are talking from ignorance.

[RearwindowNic]

01:43 AM on 04/02/2010

Yes, it is selfish. When I was going to kill myself I didn't care about anything or anyone. I was at the point in my life that I could not make anything better happen. I had no control over the housing market that killed my high paying job. I was being evicted from my home with no where but the streets to go to. I was done and to hell with everyone else. No one was there for me, so stick a fork in my and on to the next life. Fortunately, a few weird events happened in the span of an hour and I ended up in a home with a stranger. I'm happy to say it's been up from there. I thank God that I'm alive today, two jobs and I'm back in college. I say all this to say, DON'T give up. Life has a strange way of making things better.

[beigeslacks]

10:41 AM on 04/02/2010

Oh please - living is at least as "selfish" (if that's the moral index here) as dying. And it is certainly more selfish than being dead.

[cold cash]

10:06 PM on 04/01/2010

SO SAD.I WISH THE FAMILY WELL...GOD BLESS

[beigeslacks]

10:45 AM on 04/02/2010

Agreed. I think these kids really suffer in silence. It takes a lot of living to realize that things change, sometimes whether you want them to or not. But a person who contemplates suicide is in a very dark place and I find the moral judgments about "selfishness" completely absurd in the context of the kind of mental anguish attendant to suicide - disturbingly bereft of any kind of human feeling or compassion.

[NOLA2]

08:53 PM on 04/01/2010

If you or a loved one need support or information on depression or any mental illness, there is a resource available at NAMI: http://www.nami.org/

To the blogger who thinks suicide is selfish, you are perpetuating the stigma of having a mental illness. You may have one lurking in your DNA and timed to appear later in life (just like cancer or diabetes) - we all may have this or be lucky enough to dodge it. Many are not so lucky and they need our compassion and understanding just like any other illness.

My thoughts and prayers are with Cameron Dabaghi's family and friends.

[jco933]

01:45 AM on 04/02/2010

Thank you for saying that. My best friend committed suicide about a month ago. He had just turned 27. He tried everything to get better. He saw a psychiatrist several times a week, tried all different kinds of anti-depressants, went to group therapy, checked into a mental hospital for a short period for intensive care, volunteered (at a soup kitchen, at a non-profit that places at risk high school kids with adult mentors, at a non-profit that provides free legal advice to low income new york city residents), even tried herbs and acupuncture... for over ten years and still couldn't beat it. Though I admit that I am hurt by what he did, the logical part of my brain recognizes that patience, understanding, and compassion are exactly what a person suffering from mental illness, like my friend, needs (or I guess needed). And of course, the message that depression and other mental illnesses can affect anyone needs to be spread as well. Seriously, this kid was incredibly bright, funny, kind, caring, compassionate- not deficient in anyway- and this illness got a hold of him and destroyed him anyway. If it could happen to him, it can happen to anyone. And it is such a huge tragedy when it does.

[beigeslacks]

10:50 AM on 04/02/2010

I am sorry for your loss. I really think most suicides hate the thought of hurting the people that care for them but just can't stand being alive - they find it too painful - and who are we to judge?. I don't think its done out of anger or hate in many cases - but simply an overwhelming desire for peace. I hope your friend has found his.

[Seán O'Nilbud]

02:39 AM on 04/02/2010

Suicide is a selfish act philosophically and morally. The cause of suicide is a different matter.

[beigeslacks]

10:51 AM on 04/02/2010

And so is judging other people and lacking compassion. As I said earlier, you would be hard pressed to find an argument for the selflessness of living - unless you are a truly selfless person, that is - in which case I applaud your example.

[LLelantra]

08:46 PM on 04/01/2010

Please if you are reading this, reconsider committing to such a permenant solution to a temporary problem. There is hope, Jesus loves you.

[rjkelly34]

11:01 PM on 04/01/2010

...not to mention Allah, Buddha, Mohammad, Vishnu, etc.... just a little open advice from someone other than a Christian. Do you think that Jesus punished this poor man because he sinned, or covenant'd his neighbors wife? It was a man, not religion that made the choice that life isn't worth it anymore. Take a look around. Is this the world in which we all live in. Is this the world Jesus would have shunned or embraced?
Take care.

[gifu]

05:20 AM on 04/02/2010

If you believe in re-incarnation, it could be temporary solution that really leads to a permanent problem.......

[MikeHermit]

08:59 AM on 04/02/2010

Your Jesus shpeel only alienates more those who are suicidal and have no belief in your faith.

[MikeHermit]

08:59 AM on 04/02/2010

oops, meant for the lead post in this chain.

[Edna Vanderswump]

08:41 PM on 04/01/2010

The Victorians had a good word for it, "melancholia". It is a pervasive, underlying feeling of sadness, often about the people you care about. Their fragility and inherent weakness. That, coupled with a conviction that the world is essentially a cruel place and *purpose* seems futile and meaningless, makes the term "melancholia" seem more fitting than "depression". I say this as an expert in the field, as I've suffered this crushing illness for decades now.. It's easy to think thoughts of ending it all; what always prevents me is my fear of abandoning those I love.

[Seán O'Nilbud]

02:47 AM on 04/02/2010

Yeah they must love laughing along with you as you recount cheery tales of gruesome death around every corner. If you can't identify the problem there may not actually be one. You could be just a whinger which is a lot less romantic than melancholia but better than melanoma.
Life is art, the art is Mexican soap opera more than Opera, stop being a critic and enjoy the show.

[alexjones1]

04:06 AM on 04/02/2010

That was beautifully worded EdnaVan, I know your pain. Keep your chin up.

[greenbergrn]

08:30 PM on 04/01/2010

I am in the medical profession in Austin and I know Cameron's father, an amazing doctor in our community. I am so filled with sadness that this boy felt he had no other solutions to his problems.
Depression is an equal opportunity destroyer. We all battle our own demons and unfortunately sometimes the demons win. Please, please remember Cameron's family as you comment on his death. They are real people grieving in the worst of all circumstances. This death defies the natural order of things. Dr. Dabaghi should not have to bury his child.

[dojone]

12:48 AM on 04/02/2010

Y recently retired from over 40 years of nursing in Austin, Tx and have cared for patients of Dr Dabaghi, in fact my husband was a patient in the group practice he worked for. I was a psychiatric nurse, who had also worked for health insurance companies, yet when my husband with both medicare and private insurance needed a psychiatric evaluation last spring, I could not find anyone willing to see him. My sympathy to his family and freinds. Maybe Texas will wake up to the need to provide Mental Health Services.

[janeyre]

08:15 PM on 04/01/2010

I juse feel cold and sad... May the family and friends, find comfort
in the love they must share with each other. Such a sad conclusion.
Sigh...