{"id":1161692,"date":"2022-01-31T18:42:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-31T23:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/?p=1161692"},"modified":"2022-02-01T17:55:10","modified_gmt":"2022-02-01T22:55:10","slug":"hyattsville-md-mayor-kevin-ward-allegedly-takes-own-life-at-44","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/hyattsville-md-mayor-kevin-ward-allegedly-takes-own-life-at-44\/","title":{"rendered":"Hyattsville, Md., Mayor Kevin Ward Allegedly Takes Own Life at 44"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Suicide served as the alleged cause of death for Kevin Ward, 44, mayor of Hyattsville, Md., who died on Jan. 25. Authorities discovered his body in an urban area not far from the District.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt is with great sadness that we report that our beloved Hyattsville Mayor Kevin Ward passed away yesterday \u2026 from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound,&#8221; a post on the official website for Hyattsville said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While few details have been released confirming the cause or reason behind Ward&#8217;s death, the issue of suicide has captured headlines in recent weeks following the reported deaths of Ian Alexander Jr., 26, the son of actress Regina King, Peter Robbins, who served as the voice of \u201cCharlie Brown,\u201d and the sons of both Sinead O&#8217;Conner and Michael Madsen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, suicide does not discriminate between those who may hold celebrity status and those deemed \u201cordinary people.\u201d It currently counts as the 10th-leading cause of death in the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As The Washington Informer surmised in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/editorial-suicide-of-regina-kings-son-may-bring-critical-attention-to-problem-among-young-blacks\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">editorial<\/a> published Jan. 27, 2022, which addressed the tragic death of Regina King&#8217;s son just days after his 26th birthday in January and the growing prevalence of suicide in the Black community, suicide has reached unprecedented heights among Black youth, particularly Black girls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Worldwide, suicide represents the fourth-leading cause of death for adolescents ages 15-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A host of warning signs can be found for those who may be more likely to consider, attempt, or die by suicide, including mental, mood or anxiety disorders, alcohol or other substance use, hopelessness, family history, job or financial loss, and a history of abuse or trauma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And while there remain treatments for those dealing with suicidal thoughts, including medication or psychotherapy, and while one can recover with the proper treatment, it&#8217;s imperative that if you believe you know someone who may be in danger of committing suicide, that you immediately reach out for help on their behalf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for assistance at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org or call them, 24 hours a day, at 800-272-8255.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Suicide served as the alleged cause of death for Kevin Ward, 44, mayor of Hyattsville, Md., who died on Jan. 25.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2342,"featured_media":1161707,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_primary_brand":0,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","nota_seo_page_title":"","nota_seo_page_description":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"small","newspack_post_subtitle":"Authorities Point to Self-Inflicted Gunshot as Apparent Cause of Death","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30817,34953],"tags":[29293,45048,57392,8714,2175],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"nota":[],"coauthors":[53559],"class_list":["post-1161692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-d-kevin-mcneir","tag-d-kevin-mcneir","tag-hyattsville","tag-kevin-ward","tag-maryland","tag-suicide","entry"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.0 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - 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He currently serves as senior editor for The Washington Informer. There, in nation\u2019s capital, he displays a keen insight for developing front page news as it unfolds within the Greater Washington Area, capturing the crucial facts and facets of today\u2019s ever-changing political arena, fast-paced business world and exciting sports and entertainment venues. The former elementary and high school teacher, and adjunct professor at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, he has degrees from The University of Michigan, Emory University and Princeton Theological Seminary. In 2020, he received First Place for Weekly Newspaper, Commentary &amp; Criticism, Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), Washington, D.C. Pro Chapter. In 2021, SPJ recognized his work in the same category \u2013 this time selecting him as one of several finalists. Learn more about him at www.dkevinmcneir.com, Facebook \u2013 Kevin McNeir, Twitter - @mcneirdk, LinkedIn \u2013 D. Kevin McNeir or email: mcneirdk@washingtoninformer.com.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/kevin.mcneir","https:\/\/x.com\/@dkevinmcneir"],"url":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/author\/dkevinmcneir\/"}]}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/washingtoninformer.com\/hyattsville-md-mayor-kevin-ward-allegedly-takes-own-life-at-44\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Hyattsville, Md., Mayor Kevin Ward Allegedly Takes Own Life at 44","url":"http:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/hyattsville-md-mayor-kevin-ward-allegedly-takes-own-life-at-44\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/hyattsville-md-mayor-kevin-ward-allegedly-takes-own-life-at-44\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=150%2C100&ssl=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1"},"articleSection":"Community","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"D. 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Ford","date":"February 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"A chilly rainfall dampened the weather outside but family, friends and colleagues sought to brighten their spirits inside as they celebrated the life of the late Hyattsville Mayor Kevin \u201cScooter\u201d Ward.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Community&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Community","link":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/category\/community\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"**FILE** Hyattsville Mayor Kevin Ward (left) receives an award June 12 from LGTBQ+ Prince George\u2019s Pride for \u201cExcellence in Government.\u201d Ward, also gay, served as interim mayor before winning the election for mayor one month earlier. (Anthony Tilghman\/The Washington Informer)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/unnamed-file-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/unnamed-file-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/unnamed-file-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/unnamed-file-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/unnamed-file-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1162450,"url":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/letters-to-the-editor-condolences-and-congrats\/","url_meta":{"origin":1161692,"position":1},"title":"LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Condolences and Congrats","author":"WI Web Editor","date":"February 16, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"First, let me say rest peacefully to Hyattsville Mayor Kevin Ward. Also, sending congratulations to Dr. Monifa Knight, the new public school superintendent for Montgomery County.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Letters to the Editor&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Letters to the Editor","link":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/category\/letters-to-the-editor\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"**FILE** Kevin Ward (Courtesy of wardforhyattsville.com)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/image-8.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":142760,"url":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/pride-in-prince-georges\/","url_meta":{"origin":1161692,"position":2},"title":"Pride in Prince George&#8217;s","author":"William J. Ford","date":"June 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Although America has slowly become more welcoming to those in the LGBTQ community, Del. Gabriel Acevero and other elected officials and activists said it\u2019s not enough.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Prince George's County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Prince George's County","link":"https:\/\/www.washingtoninformer.com\/category\/prince-georges-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Hyattsville, Maryland, Mayor Kevin Ward (left) receives an award June 12 from LGTBQ+ Prince George\u2019s Pride for \u201cExcellence in Government.\u201d Ward, who is gay, served as interim mayor before he won last month's city election as mayor. 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