Missouri auditor shoots self, dies

Official a month ago had announced Republican candidacy for governor.

JEFFERSON CITY, MO. — Missouri Auditor Tom Schweich, a Republican candidate for governor, died Thursday of a selfinflicted gunshot wound, a staff member said.

The auditor’s office staff member spoke on condition of anonymity. A statement from Schweich’s spokesman confirmed the 54-year-old had died but didn’t list a cause.

Schweich was taken to the hospital Thursday after what his staff initially described as a “medical situation” at his home in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton.

“It is with great sadness that I confirm the passing of Missouri State Auditor Tom Schweich today,” spokesman Spence Jackson said in the statement. “Please keep in mind his wife Kathy and two children.”

Schweich had served as auditor since January 2011 and won re-election in November to a second four-year term. He announced a month ago that he was seeking the Republican nomination for governor in 2016, and was gearing up for an expected primary fight against Catherine Hanaway, a former U.S. attorney and Missouri House speaker.

Schweich called The Associated Press at 9:16 a.m. Thursday, inviting a reporter to his home for a 2:30 p.m. interview and noting that a newspaper reporter also had been invited. An AP reporter spoke with Schweich by phone again at 9:35 a.m. to discuss the upcoming interview.

Schweich’s office released a routine audit of the Depart- ment of Corrections at 10 a.m. Then at 11:18 a.m., the auditor’s office said in a statement that Schweich had been taken to a hospital. Schweich’s office confirmed his death about two hours later.

Schweich spent last weekend wooing fellow Republicans during the state GOP’s annual conference in Kansas City. He spoke energetically, frequently touting his work rooting out government waste and corruption as auditor.

Missouri Auditor Tom Schweich had been in office since January 2011 and had won re-election in November to a second four-year term.