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Body of Alabama senator's grandson found

Body of Alabama senator's grandson found
17-year-old found dead in Villa Rica area

By TIM EBERLY
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 11/13/07

The body of the grandson of an Alabama state senator was found Tuesday afternoon in the Villa Rica area where the teenager's car was discovered.

Authorities in Carroll County notified state Sen. Jim Preuitt's office about 2 p.m. that they found the body of 17-year-old Ben Stanford, according to one of the senator's staffers.

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His vehicle recently was found along I-20 near Villa Rica.

The Lincoln, Ala., resident was last seen on the morning of Nov. 5. A student at The Donoho School in Anniston, Ala., he was the son of one of Preuitt's daughters.

Details on Stanford's death were not available late Tuesday afternoon.

Preuitt could not be reached for comment. When reached at Preuitt's home, a man who identified himself as a Preuitt family member said the family was not ready to comment on the boy's death.

A Web site that had been created to help find Ben offered a $100,000 reward to information that would lead to his safe return.

On it, a fellow student from Donoho, Elizabeth Smith, posted a poem titled "A Note to Ben Stanford."

"Come home Ben, We all miss you a great deal," she wrote. "We will soon find you, And our worried hearts will heal."

A grim announcement of the body's discovery, however, was posted on the school's Web site Tuesday afternoon.

http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2007/...rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13
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Suicide is the third leading cause of death between the ages of 15-24. Men are most likely to commit suicide 4 times more than women.

For more on male teenage suicide:

http://menshealth.about.com/od/teenhealth/a/teen_suicide.htm?once=true&

I believe the coroner’s report was most likely based on a combination of interviews with the family and friends, the physical evidence at the scene, and the autopsy rather than just the odds.

http://www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/news/071115/teen.shtml

My sympathies go out to the family.
After hearing the initial report on this from the medical examiner...not another word. I wonder if the grandfather. state senator, had this story suppressed?

I never did hear the story claiming the wound was to the back of his head. I understand the weapon was found at the scene, strongly indicating suicide, since if there was a perpetrator, he would be very unlikely to abandon the weapon.

I would be interested in hearing any follow up on this story.
It appears from what I read in the B’ham News and other papers including the one in my first post that the family has accepted the coroner’s report ruling cause of death is suicide.

And my hope is for the families sake that this ends this public story so they can deal with their personal tragedy in private.

No, I never heard the “back of the head” story, nor did P&P divulge her source so it is what it is...

Anyone not familiar with teenage suicide... Google it. Although it may raise more questions than it answers.

So very sad, especially if you have known a parent who experienced this.
Last edited by budsfarm

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