Apparent Suicide In Front Of D.C. Law Office Building

People heading to work in Washington, D.C. around 13th St. NW and G might have seen a gruesome sight. A man plunged from a building and died in the street. The incident happened at 8:15 in the morning, and police quickly blocked off the area. Authorities suspect suicide.

Commenters on Reddit and the Washington Post suspect that the victim jumped from 700 13th St. NW, and not the Macy’s building across the street. The 700 building houses a number of law firms, including Perkins Coie, Freshfields, and Hyman, Phelps & McNamara.

Details about the victim have not been released.

Regardless of those details, many of our D.C. friends were closer to tragedy today than anybody would like. As lawyers, the impulse is to ignore the unpleasant circumstances and head back to work. Bill those hours, even if you have to walk over a corpse to get to the office.

Well, the day is over. Mission accomplished. I would urge anybody in or around 700 13th St. NW to at least spend the evening taking care of themselves. Take a breath, phone a friend, do whatever it is you do to remind yourself that there is an entire world out there and you are not traveling in it alone. Winter is coming. Seasonal Affective Disorder is coming. Please take care of yourselves.

The national Suicide Prevention Lifeline number is: 1-800-273-TALK.

UPDATE (11/4/2015,9:45 a.m.): Freshfields has posted this message on its website:

Sponsored

It is with deep sadness we report that our colleague and friend Tim Coleman passed away today in Washington, DC. Tim’s enthusiasm for his family and friends touched everyone around him. His death is a profound loss to all of us personally and to Freshfields. We will do all we can to support his wife and family, who are very much in our thoughts and prayers.

As noted in Coleman’s bio, he graduated from Georgetown Law in 1990 and spent eight years of his career in government service with the Justice Department, as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York and as senior counsel to the deputy attorney general at Main Justice. He also practiced at Dewey & LeBoeuf prior to joining Freshfields.

We at Above the Law send our condolences and sympathies to Tim Coleman’s family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.

Just heard someone fell/jumped off a building near metro center. [Reddit]
Part of 13th Street in Northwest D.C. closed after man apparently plunged from building [Washington Post]
Our partner, Tim Coleman [Freshfields]

Sponsored