Melissa Batten, a Software Development Engineer in Test for Microsoft, was killed by her husband, who then committed suicide. They were both 36.
Edit: Apparently this is old news? I hadn’t heard about it until now.
Old news here in Washington at least. She worked in the building next to mine, think I saw her in the Cafe a few times. Very sad.
I dislike hearing about murder-suicides. It just makes me really mad that somebody would take someone’s life and then in a bout of extra selfishness take their own.
Sad news indeed.
Yeah, I agree. Suicides are often quite selfish, though not always obviously. In cases like this, it’s either extremely selfish or the guy was just a nut. Hard to say without knowing more about the story. Either way, a lousy situation.
I thought “dev” was going to be short for development, and the rest of the title was non-literal. As in “canned.” Or dropped.
Suicide isn’t anymore selfish than pressuring someone to stay alive just because you want them to.
This thread has taken quite a turn.
While I can certainly see the rationale for adjudging suicide to be a selfish act, it’s certainly less selfish that taking someone else’s life, right? I’m a bit more concerned with the murder than I am with the suicide.
Hold on there! This is the internet. That kind of reasoning has no place here.
Oh I agree the murder is the terrible part and it would have been better if the guy had just committed suicide. A suicide can especially be selfish if the person still has young children, but I think we all kind of irrationally sit around nodding our heads about how terrible suicide is and then turn around and deny public funds to help these people.
I think we’d be better off changing our attitudes about suicide. In the long run, more harm is done to society (and these persons) trying to keep suicidal people alive. They are suicidal for a reason and usually because they are emotionally and mentally disturbed.
Yeah, a murderer committing suicide is better for everybody. The murderer doesn’t have to go to jail, the police don’t have to arrest him, the prison guards don’t have to house him, the courts don’t have to try him, and there’s no sentence to be served. It’s a very fast-track execution with the consent of the subject. Good times.
Jeez, I’m pretty sure I’d met her before. That’d make two people I’ve met killed in a murder-suicide this month. Not exactly a number you like to have above zero.
Condolences to any around here who knew her, the odds are pretty good someone did.
Yeah, I’ve had 8 murder suicide deaths in this country these last few years. Sucks. Kinda why I get a bit pissy in P&R when someone goes “boohoo, people got killed”. That whole needless death thing pushes some buttons.
Are you sure you don’t have that backwards?
With a murder suicide you never get a complete resolution to the question “why?” Some freak just spraypaints some words on the sidewalk and starts killing your friends.
Helter Skelter!
MS cases are scary, because at least for murder, you have consequences to deter you from committing the act.
If you’ve decided to kill yourself, and decide to take someone else with you… what’s going to stop you?
Crazy world we live in.
She visited Epic for a bit and helped us out on the first Gears game. Very sad news indeed.
So GTA4 isn’t too blame this time?
…I know, bad form, awfully sad to hear.
Let’s never meet !
Holy crap, I just found out that the husband was DDI senior manager at Wizards of the Coast.
What a shame. May they both RIP.