Right To Die? Mark Lavoie Shoots Wife, Commits Double Suicide ‘Out Of Love,’ According To Facebook Post

When shots were fired inside a critical care room at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover, New Hampshire, the hospital was put on alert. When police entered the room, they found that Mark Lavoie had shot his wife Katherine and then committed suicide himself. Before committing to the shooting, the 50-year-old Lavoie explained in a Facebook post that he was actually committed to the right to die, not a murder-suicide.

In a related report by the Inquisitr, Stephen Hawking believes the right to die via assisted suicide should be legal for the disabled. The recent death of Brittany Maynard brought a lot of attention to the right to die movement, but those with similar life stories like Lauren Hill and Michelle Boyd Dejong believe the right to live is more important.

Only minutes before the shooting took place, Mark Lavoie left a message on his Facebook page explaining the circumstances. Based upon the description, the reason Katherine was in the hospital was because Mr. Lavoie had contacted 911.

“I want to start off by saying this is going to be officially ruled a murder/suicide when in all actuality it is a double suicide. My baby was trying to escape the bi-polar demons that have been swirling around in her brain since childhood and now because of my selfishness in dialing 911 she is experiencing the only thing she feared more than her illness … life support on a respirator.”

Lavoie says he brought his wife’s living will to the hospital but claimed the doctors “said her wishes didn’t apply because depression isn’t a non-reversible state.” He explains that this predicament led him to the decision to shoot both himself and his wife based upon a belief in the right to suicide.

“I am more than happy to sacrifice my life to fix my doing and join her spirit in a happier place. I just wanted let people know my thoughts as to why I am doing this, whether you can understand it or not.”

Much of the Facebook post focuses on asking friends of the family to take care of their estate and funeral arrangements since Lavoie did not write a will. Lavoie asked that all his belongings be split between several people and asked that their pets be cared for in return. After discussing what he wanted to be done with their remains, Lavoie signed off with final farewell message.

“Though a difficult subject I hope my family whom I love dearly can make some sense of what I’m doing though unless you have dealt directly with mental illness if will be difficult…. Please don’t mourn for me, my spirit will be in a much better place with my soul mate; you may even catch a glimpse of us from time to time. Well, in all the years I’ve been on FB I never was one for posting any drama…..I was due one. Love you all, peace out! [sic]”

The sister of Mark Lavoie, Dorcas, says that her brother shot his wife and himself “out of love.” According to Sea Coast Online, New Hampshire Attorney General Joseph Foster and Dover Police Chief Anthony Colarusso say that police officers are still investigating the apparent double suicide.