He has been to the scene of over 1,000 suicides, and here's what he wants you to know

Bibb County saw 30 homicides last year that were all covered by multiple media outlets, but another 24 violent deaths happened largely in the shadows.

Those were all suicides, the most Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones has seen in his 28 years with the coroner's office. The victims included a 14-year-old girl who shot herself with her father's gun. He suspects bullying was a factor.

All but four of last year's suicides were men. The county had 20 suicides total in 2016.

Unless it involves a public person, a public location or harm to another, media generally consider suicides to be private matters that are not reported.

At a suicide prevention symposium at Riverside United Methodist Church on Thursday, Jones recounted some of last year's suicides. He also talked about others among more than 1,000 he has worked with the coroner's office and in his 32 years as a paramedic. The free event, put on by Coliseum Health System and Kindred Hospice, is in its fourth year and drew about 150 health professionals, emergency responders, clergy and others from around Middle Georgia.

Jones recounted a heartbreaking story about the first suicide of 2017. A man came home to find his wife with another man. He didn't take any action but went to his mother's house and planned to go to church with her the next morning.

"When she got up the next morning to go to church she walked out into the back yard and he was hanging from a tree," Jones said. "29 years old."

He said suicides happen among all ages and all types of people. Some show signs of depression and others don't. Many are older, but he has seen children as young as 12 commit suicide. Many are well off financially, or at least not in financial trouble. He remembered one suicide victim who had $200,000 in his bank account.

Guns are the most common method, but a wide range are used, including overdose, hanging and carbon monoxide poisoning. The most gruesome he ever saw was when someone jumped in front of a train.

There are likely more suicides than the numbers reflect. Jones said many times suicide is suspected but can't be proven, such as with car wrecks. He suspects that a man who stepped in front of a semi-truck last year and was killed did it on purpose, but he couldn't prove it so it wasn't ruled a suicide.

Causes are also numerous, and sometimes are unknown, but he said domestic issues are the most common. Among older people it's often those suffering long term pain. Among youths, he said bullying is a big factor. He urged parents to pay careful attention to their children for signs of bullying, and to monitor their online activities.

Jones has been known to publicly express outrage over homicides in Macon, but he said going to the scene of a suicide has at times been more emotionally difficult for him.

"Some of the suicides were good friends of mine," he said. "We worked together and worked very close together."

Among those were three male nurses who were in a love triangle. One left one for the other, setting off suicides by all three over a period of three years.

"All three of them were very good nurses," he said. "When people take their lives that are close to you and you think a lot of them, it works on you mentally. That's one reason I start my day with prayer every morning."

He urged people not to dismiss those who commit suicides as cowards.

"You don’t know what you will do or how you will think if the pressure gets on," he said. "I think a lot of people who take their own lives feel like there’s no one to talk to and no one to turn to."

He said he did not see any particular trend of veterans committing suicide this area and could not think of any in his career in which a suicide was tied to military service.

Ashley Williams, director of Macon-Bibb County Services for River Edge Behavioral Health, said nationally on average one person commits suicide about every 13 minutes. For every suicide, she said, there are about 25 attempts.

"Definitely prevention and early intervention is what is needed," she said.

Jones repeatedly urged people to take suicide threats seriously and to seek help for anyone who may be showing warning signs.

Anyone thinking of suicide or who knows someone at risk can call a suicide crisis line at 1-800-715-4225, which can dispatch a mobile team to go to a location if needed.

This story was originally published April 12, 2018 at 4:51 PM with the headline "He has been to the scene of over 1,000 suicides, and here's what he wants you to know."