The former NFL star Junior Seau was found dead at his home on Wednesday morning (May 2, 2012), with a gunshot wound to the chest thought to be the cause of death. Police Chief Frank MCCoy said Seau's girlfriend found him unconscious though lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful, reports ESPN.
Authorities are investigating the possibility that Seau's death was a suicide, though no suicide note was found and the wound to the chest appears unusual. The tragic death has led to a resurgence of interest in the player's troubled personal life, with focus on one particular incident in 2010 when the San Diego Chargers star drove his SUV off a cliff shortly after being released from jail in connection with a domestic violence case, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. At the time, Seau told investigators that he fell asleep behind the wheel, with his car being found on the beach 30 feet below the roadside. Investigators ruled out that Seau had attempting to commit suicide. The football star had been arrested shortly after midnight that day after he allegedly assaulted his 25-year-old girlfriend during an argument at their Oceanside home.
According to People magazine, Seau's mother sobbed in front of her son's Californian home on Wednesday, yelling, "Monday, Tuesday [he was] talking to me, joking. Junior, why you never tell me?...I don't understand, I don't understand.I prayed to God, 'Take me. Take me, and leave my son.' But it's too late",