Former MLB player Charles Haeger found dead after police sought him as a suspect in killing of his e

[Eugene]

Source: CNN

Former MLB player Charles Haeger found dead after police sought him as a suspect in killing of his ex-girlfriend

By Gisela Crespo and Alaa Elassar, CNN
Updated 2250 GMT (0650 HKT) October 4, 2020

(CNN) — Former MLB player Charles Haeger was found dead in Northern Arizona from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Saturday after police announced they were searching for him as a suspect in the death of his ex-girlfriend in Scottsdale the previous day, police said.

Haeger's car was found unoccupied near Flagstaff on Saturday morning, according to a press release from Scottsdale Police Sgt. Ben Hoster. Around 4 p.m., Haeger was found dead along a trail at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon "from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound," Hoster said.

Police found the body of 34-year-old Danielle Breed in her home on Friday, after her roommate reported hearing gunshots and seeing Haeger exit her room with a handgun.

"My daughter was the spark of our family," Jane Long, Breed's mother, told CNN, adding that her daughter went by her maiden name, Danielle Long. "She was the light on our darkest day. We all thrived on her infectious smile and positivity. We are crushed that she was a victim of such a horrific crime."

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Read more: https://edition.cnn.com/2020/10/04/us/charles-haeger-death-mlb-killed-ex-girlfriend-trnd/index.html

[CaptYossarian]

1. What are you supposed to do when you reach the top for a brief time and then wash out?

It's the same with child stars.

People treat you special when your brain--your personality and sense of reason--aren't mature enough to handle either the success or the failure. Haeger thought he was good enough to stay in the majors and probably had no other marketable skills. People weren't paying him to sign baseball cards and he most likely squandered whatever salary he had earned. He went from a "winner" to a loser in the blink of an eye.

Add to that an above-average amount of testosterone or maybe roids and his one-time competitiveness turns to violence. Haeger needed professional help to transition to outside life and Ms. Long paid the price for his not receiving any.

[NewDayOranges]

2. I don't know ALL the details/history of this couple,

But it sounds like an ongoing domestic violence situation... Sometimes the situation drags on long after one of the partners has seemingly moved on with their life and the other seems STUCK in the situation.

[CaptYossarian]

3. That's true--or we wouldn't have any Lifetime movies.

As I was typing my opinion on this, I was thinking about three related instances of stopping a career in sports at an early age:

1) A Chiefs player who committed suicide in the 1980s and had no plans after his career was over. The "treated special" part came from a sports psychologist who studied NFL suicides (before the discovery of CTE).

2) Dexter Manley, who retired at 35 due to his bad knees. Dexter went through college, received a degree, yet was functionally illiterate and sued the NFL for allowing such a thing to happen. He had no marketable skills other than tackling people.

3) Naturally, OJ Simpson. I merely thought of him because of the act of violence, but you took it deeper than I should have.