RIDGELAND, Miss. (AP) — A tea party official charged with
conspiring to take photos of U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran’s wife inside a
nursing home apparently committed suicide Friday, police said, days
after Cochran won a nasty Republican primary.
The body of attorney
Mark Mayfield was found Friday morning in the garage of his two-story,
brick home in a gated community outside Jackson. A gun was found nearby,
Ridgeland Police Chief Jimmy Houston said. Houston says Mayfield had
been shot, and a suicide note was found at the scene.
"Everything we see so far, this appears to be a suicide," Houston said.
Mayfield’s
death came just days after tea party-backed state Sen. Chris McDaniel
was defeated by Cochran in the Republican Senate runoff. Mayfield had
been a board member of the Central Mississippi Tea Party and had raised
money for McDaniel’s campaign.
Mayfield faced a conspiracy charge,
a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine for
a conviction, after allegations he and others conspired to take photos
of 72-year-old Rose Cochran at the nursing where she has lived since
2001. The photos were later used in an anti-Cochran political video
posted briefly online during the Republican primary.
An additional weight for Mayfield: Under Mississippi court rules he could have lost his law license if
convicted and sentenced.
In a statement Friday, McDaniel, who has denied any connection to the photos, praised Mayfield.
"Regardless
of recent allegations made against his character, Mark Mayfield was a
fine Christian man who was always respectful and kind. He was one of the
most polite and humble men I’ve ever met in politics. He was a loving
husband, father, a pillar of his community, and he will be missed. We
are saddened by his loss, and we send our thoughts and prayers to his
wife, his family and friends," McDaniel said.
Janis Lane,
president of the board of the Central Mississippi Tea Party, said she
had not seen Mayfield since he was charged, but had been in contact with
him by phone and through text messages. She said Mayfield’s integrity
was important to him, and he sounded like he was feeling pressured by
the investigation.
"It was truly a challenging time for him," Lane said, wiping away tears.
Three
other men also were arrested last month and face various charges of
conspiring to photograph Rose Cochran in the home where she has lived
since 2001 with dementia. The Cochran family said she has lost the
ability to speak and is receiving hospice care. Police said conservative
blogger Clayton Thomas Kelly of Pearl photographed her without
permission on Easter Sunday.
In a statement, Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant expressed sympathy to the Mayfield family.
"Deborah
and I are saddened to hear of the loss of Mark Mayfield. He was a
long-time friend, and he will be missed. Our prayers go out to his
family in this tragic moment," wrote Bryant, a Republican.
The Cochran campaign also reacted.
"Obviously,
this is a tragic and very sad situation. Mark was a good guy. The
senator and all of our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and
friends," said Austin Barbour, a strategist and spokesman for the
campaign.
Other suspects in the photo plot are elementary school
teacher Richard Sager of Laurel and John Mary of Hattiesburg, who took
over hosting a conservative talk radio show formerly hosted by McDaniel.
McDaniel left the radio job before his election to the Mississippi
Senate in 2007.
Lane spoke Friday at the Hinds County Courthouse,
where she and other McDaniel supporters were examining poll books to
look for examples of crossover voting — people who had voted in the June
3 Democratic primary and in Tuesday’s Republican runoff between
McDaniel and Cochran.
"He was the finest man," Lane said. "He was an attorney of impeccable character."
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Wagster Pettus reported from Jackson, Mississippi.