Man Accused Of Setting His Mom On Fire Choked To Death On Wet Toilet Paper

Adam Howe, 34

Photo: Tewksbury Police Department

A Massachusetts man accused of murdering his mother was found dead in his jail cell in an apparent suicide. Adam Howe, 34, was arrested on Friday (September 30) after authorities responded to reports of a fire at the home of his mother, 69-year-old Susan Howe.

When officers arrived, they found Howe standing in the front yard with his mother's burning body on the lawn behind him.

Howe was taken into custody and brought to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. While a judge determined that Howe should be involuntarily committed to a mental health facility, officials at Bridgewater State Hospital refused to accept him as a patient.

According to the Boston Globe, the facility said the request to involuntarily commit Howe would have to come from a prison, not an on-call judge. As a result, Howe was transferred to a jail in New Bedford, where he was put on suicide watch.

Correctional officers were ordered to check on Howe every 15 minutes. On Sunday, guards went to Howe's cell and found that he was unresponsive. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. While officials have not determined the cause of death, WCVB reported that Howe choked himself using wet toilet paper.

"(This) tragic case illustrates the broken nature of the mental health system, particularly … when entwined in the criminal justice system," Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe told the news station.


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