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| Jack Henry Abbott, Murderer and Best-selling Author, Commits Suicide |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 02/12/2002 |
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Jack Henry Abbott, whose prison writings became the best-selling book ''In the Belly of the Beast,'' hanged himself in his cell Sunday, officials said. Abbott was found dead Sunday morning in his single cell at Wende Correctional Facility, said to Jim Flateau, spokesman for the state Department of Corrections. He hanged himself with a bedsheet and a shoelace and left a suicide note, Flateau said. Flateau would not disclose the contents of the note. Abbott, who was 58, gained fame from writing ''In the Belly of the Beast,'' a best-seller composed of letters he wrote to author Norman Mailer from prison between 1978 and 1981. During those years, Abbott was behind bars first for bank robbery and then for fatally stabbing another inmate. Mailer supported Abbott's parole, but six weeks after Abbott was released in 1981, he stabbed a 22-year-old aspiring actor outside a New York City restaurant. Abbott was sentenced to 15 years to life for manslaughter in the man's death. He was denied parole in August and would not have been eligible again until June 2003. In 1990, Abbott lost a nearly $7.6 million court judgment to the victim's family, who sued for proceeds from the book. Abbott was found dead about an hour after an officer had last checked his block. An autopsy is required by state law for an unattended death. |
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