I am incredibly skeptical of the hypothesis that this might be a murder. Asking a few key questions makes it clear how dubious it is:
Most importantly, who's gun was it? If it was someone else's gun, sure, it's a murder, but I think we'll find that the gun was Barnett's. And if so, we have to ask, how did the murderer manage to kill Barnett with his own gun?
How did the killer get into the truck? We can assume the killer had to be in the truck, since the alternative (killing Barnett elsewhere and dragging the body through a Holiday Inn parking lot into the driver's seat) is absurd. Did they get lucky and try the door, finding it to be open? If so, wouldn't there be signs of a struggle when a stranger enters your vehicle? Or did they get in because they know Barnett, and he let them in (in which case, they won't have an alibi)?
Why commit a murder in a public location? I won't be surprised if the Holiday Inn parking lot was being surveilled.
The fact that the gun was found in his hand, and the timing of the murder, do seem like pretty big coincidences. But I think it's easier to chalk these up to coincidences than it is to answer the above questions. Additionally, per his Wikipedia page, he suffered from PTSD and anxiety attacks. These don't guarantee that he's suicidal, but it's not the picture of perfect mental health either.
I'm very interested if anyone thinks they have a good explanation of how this could have taken place as a murder.
Parking lots have cameras. If this was a suicide I’m confident they will find the footage. If it mysteriously disappears or the cameras at the Holiday Inn “malfunctioned” there will be little doubt as to what really happened. The fact that his friends and family are not intimidated makes it a lot more likely we will get the truth whatever it is.
The Epstein deduction. If something is monitorer 24/7 but not the exact time a “suicide” happens, you can be confident a suicide did in fact not happen.
I’m skeptical too and I’m glad that rank speculation is being deranked well below FP.
But someone else wondered if it’s almost worse than murder that even successful whistleblowing can lead to experiences so awful you want to kill yourself. Like “Boeing won’t kill you, they’ll make your life so terrible that you’ll do it for them”.
I don’t think thats a completely reasonable interpretation either — but if we as a society value valid whistleblowing, what can we provide whistleblowers to help them navigate these incredibly difficult times? (financially, emotionally, socially, and spiritually)
That said, if the cameras were off or not covering where the truck parked, I don’t think it would be very complicated for a highly paid individual to steal someone’s non daily-carry gun from their home or hotel room and walk up to their window when they get in their truck, shoot them at point blank, and wipe some gunpowder residue on their hand.
I just don’t think it’s responsible to posit this as the clear reality. We don’t know what happened, and HN has been terribly wrong about the details of various recent high profile deaths - Tony Hsieh and Bob Lee. This type of speculation always causes more pain for the families and is almost always wrong-headed.
Most importantly, who's gun was it? If it was someone else's gun, sure, it's a murder, but I think we'll find that the gun was Barnett's. And if so, we have to ask, how did the murderer manage to kill Barnett with his own gun?
How did the killer get into the truck? We can assume the killer had to be in the truck, since the alternative (killing Barnett elsewhere and dragging the body through a Holiday Inn parking lot into the driver's seat) is absurd. Did they get lucky and try the door, finding it to be open? If so, wouldn't there be signs of a struggle when a stranger enters your vehicle? Or did they get in because they know Barnett, and he let them in (in which case, they won't have an alibi)?
Why commit a murder in a public location? I won't be surprised if the Holiday Inn parking lot was being surveilled.
The fact that the gun was found in his hand, and the timing of the murder, do seem like pretty big coincidences. But I think it's easier to chalk these up to coincidences than it is to answer the above questions. Additionally, per his Wikipedia page, he suffered from PTSD and anxiety attacks. These don't guarantee that he's suicidal, but it's not the picture of perfect mental health either.
I'm very interested if anyone thinks they have a good explanation of how this could have taken place as a murder.