Missouri ‘Jewish Whisper’ Candidate’s Aide Also Commits Suicide

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Less than a month after the suicide of Missouri’s state auditor, one of the official’s top aides has also been found dead in what appears to be a suicide, police said Monday.
Robert “Spence” Jackson, 45, was found dead Sunday evening in the bedroom of his apartment in Jefferson City, apparently having killed himself with a gun, Jefferson City police said in a statement.
Jackson was a veteran of Republican state politics and at the time of his death was embroiled in in-party fighting, having called for the resignation of the party’s state chairman.
His apparent suicide comes less than a month after his boss,
Missouri State Auditor Tom Schweich, also shot himself to death at his home in suburban St. Louis.
Schweich, 54, had been re-elected in November after serving for four years and announced in January that he would seek his party’s nomination for governor.
His death on Feb. 26 came after he had complained about the tactics of rival Republicans in the primary campaign.
Police said they were still investigating the circumstances of Jackson’s death. An autopsy is planned for Monday.
A spokeswoman at the Missouri State Auditor’s office said the office had no comment about Jackson’s death.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
