Student’s death ruled suicide

One day after a graduate student fell from the top of the Life Sciences building, his death was declared a suicide.

The East Baton Rouge Parish coroner ruled Sarvnipun Chawla's death a suicide Tuesday afternoon, said Sgt. Blake Tabor, LSU Police Department spokesperson. He said the police department couldn't substantiate the claim with physical evidence.

Facility Services wouldn't comment regarding why the door to the roof was unlocked, and the dean of the College of Basic Sciences wasn't available for questions by print time.

The Daily Reveille found sixth-floor entrances to the roof locked Tuesday afternoon.
Chancellor Michael Martin addressed the incident Monday in a University e-mail.

"I would like to extend my condolences to Sarvnipun's family, friends and co-workers, as well as to the entire LSU community," Martin wrote in the e-mail.

The Baton Rouge Crisis Intervention Center held a support meeting on campus Tuesday night at the International Cultural Center.

Jenny Stewart, assistant director of student advocacy and accountability, said the meeting was open to all affected faculty, students and staff to provide coping mechanisms.

A. Ravi P. Rau, physics professor, taught one of Chawla's physics classes and said he knew Chawla for years.

"We've had quite a few interactions in the past two or three years," Rau said. "He was a very good student, very interested in physics and friendly person."

Joel Tohline, physics professor and Chawla's former graduate adviser, said he worked under the same grant as Chawla.

"I only interacted with him about once every month, but it's certainly a surprise when something like this happens," Tohline said.

Tohline said Chawla was a kind individual and a bright scientist.

PERSONAL TROUBLES

Chawla showed signs of depression in the weeks leading up to his death, Rau said.

"I knew he had been having personal difficulties at home," Rau said. "He talked with me and his other colleagues about it."

He said he believed Chawla was seeking attention from the Student Health Center.

Rau said Chawla's distress was confined to his marital problems, which Rau believed to be a divorce.

"His mother came in from India about three weeks ago because of what he was going through," Rau said. "We knew he was in distress, but this was a complete surprise."

STATISTICS ON SUICIDE

More than 30,000 suicides are reported each year in this country, according to the most recent numbers gathered in 2006 by the National Center for Health Statistics.

Suicide is the fourth-leading cause of death in the United States for adults between the ages of 18 and 65 years.

Statistics show someone dies by suicide every 16 minutes, and an attempt is made every minute.

There are four male suicides for every female suicide, according to American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. But three times as many females as males attempt suicide.

More than 60 percent of all people who commit suicide suffer from depression, and only one in three depressed people gets help, according to the AFSP.

But it's not uncommon for suicides to occur with seemingly no warning signs.

 AT THE UNIVERSITY

The University is no stranger to the reality of suicide.

In July 2009, University alumnus and local attorney Gordon Pugh shot himself in the head near the levee by Skip Bertman Drive.

University football player Naeshall Menard shot himself in the head in his car in 1998.

During the spring break of 1969, then-Student Government President Art Ensminger killed  himself alone in his apartment.

Shirley Plakidas, Union director, was the Union's program adviser at the time and said Ensminger's death was a surprise.

"He was a very outgoing person," Plakidas said. "It was very unexpected."

Other universities have also recently struggled with tragedies.

A freshman student at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Ga., died Monday after a fall from a six-story parking deck, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constituion.

And Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., has begun posting lookouts  on campus bridges and going door-to-door to check on students after three undergraduates plunged to their deaths in the last month, according to the Associated Press.

OPTIONS FOR HELP

Annemieke Henson, staff member at the Baton Rouge Crisis Intervention Center, said it's important for people experiencing thoughts of suicide to seek help.

"If someone's having thoughts of suicide, the most important thing is for them to reach out and to not try to deal with this alone," Henson said.

She said reaching out can be difficult because the person may feel alone, so it's important for the people around them to notice if there's a problem.

"It's not just an individual thing," she said. "It's up to peers and colleagues as well."

Stressors like marital problems are common causes for suicidal thoughts, Henson said.

"The most common causes are interpersonal and involve some sort of loss, like in a relationship," she said.

She said suicides generally take place in private places where the victim feels alone, but a victim may become so overwhelmed and "in the moment," a public suicide may seem like the best solution.

Students in distress should either utilize the Student Health Center or call the crisis hotline at 225-924-5781, Henson said.


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Contact Sarah Eddington at seddington@lsureveille.com