Authorities reported that a one-month-old baby boy is now orphaned after both of his parents died by suicide days apart from each other.
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St. Lucie County Deputy Clayton Osteen,23, attempted to take his own life on December 31, 2021, and was placed on life support. Two days later, his girlfriend Deputy Victoria Pacheco,24, took her own life, after dealing with the sudden loss of her partner. Osteen’s family took him off of life support on January 2 and prior to the couple’s death, they welcomed their son, Jayce, on November 22.
Sheriff Ken Mascara said in the following statement on Wednesday: “On New Year’s Eve, shortly before midnight, our agency responded to a call where we learned that Deputy Osteen, who was off duty at the time, attempted to take his own life. On Sunday, January 2, Deputy Osteen’s family made the very difficult decision to remove him from life support. Words cannot express the tremendous loss we all feel after losing these two members of our Sheriff’s Office family.”
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According to TOO FAB, Mascara said the couple was very “ambitious” and a great part of his team.
“Law enforcement deal with not only the day-to-day stress we all face but also the stress of those whom they serve in our community, which can sometimes be very challenging,”
If you or someone you know is dealing with thoughts of suicide please contact the National Suicide Prevent Lifeline(1-800-273-8255)