Man Arrested For ‘Assisting Self-Murder’ After Suicide Pact With Girlfriend Goes Wrong

0
1191
File Photo

Bunnell, FL. — Bruce Haughton, 52, is currently being booked into the Flagler County Detention Facility for Assisting Self-Murder of his girlfriend Katherine Goddard. On June 30, deputies responded to 29 Red Clover Lane in reference to a death investigation. There deputies found Bruce Haughton and Katherine Goddard inside their vehicle parked in the garage. Haughton had a pulse and was breathing; Goddard was unresponsive without a pulse.

The investigation revealed that Haughton and Goddard agreed to a suicide pact after stopping the use of prescription pain medication. Haughton planned and facilitated the suicide by placing duct tape on the garage door leading into the residence and affixing a dryer vent to the exhaust of the vehicle in order to fill the vehicle with carbon monoxide.

Their first attempt at the suicide pact on June 29th failed after the car battery died. That evening, the two purchased sleeping aids. The next day, Goddard’s daughter found the couple inside the vehicle after she returned home from work and called law enforcement. Goddard was deceased when deputies arrived, and Haughton was transported to Florida Hospital Flagler for medical attention. Haughton’s carboxyhemoglobin level was 3%.

CDC.gov supports a diagnosis of carbon monoxide poisoning when the level is greater than 9% in people who smoke cigarettes, which Haughton does.

Haughton is being held at the Flagler County Detention Facility with no bond.

“Assisted suicide is illegal in the state of Florida,” Sheriff Rick Staly said. “Our investigators did a good job of following through on this very difficult case.”

If you or someone you know has thoughts of suicide, call 9-1-1. The National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 800-273-TALK (8255) and it is free and confidential. Or call the Stewart-Marchman Crisis Line at 800-539-4228, available 24 hours and located in Daytona Beach.

Facebook Comments