Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin Commits Suicide?
The death of Springfield, Illinois, Mayor Tim Davlin is still a mystery.
Reports point to suicide, but this early in the investigation, police will not confirm. Officers received a 911 call and arrived at the home of Mayor Davlin on the morning of December 14 to find the mayor dead of an apparent gunshot wound. There is no information about who made the emergency call.
The Illinois State Police are in charge of the investigation of the mayor's death, reports The State Journal-Register. The Springfield mayor was scheduled to appear at a court hearing regarding the estate of his late cousin, when the news came of his death. His death shocked the city and those who knew him, but Tim Davlin had legal and financial problems.
The hearing Davlin missed, according to the Journal-Register was to discuss the estate of Margaret Ettelbrick, Davlin's cousin. Davlin is the executor of that estate.
Judge Pete Cavanaugh set the hearing requiring Davlin and Bradley Huff, attorney for Catholic Charities of Springfield, to be present to discuss the accounting and the status of attorneys in the estate. One attorney for the estate, has withdrawn and has submitted a fee claim against the estate for over $19,000. That attorney, Patrick "Tim" Timoney, says he withdrew because he could not complete the estate's accounting due to Davlin's failure to turn over needed documentation.
There were other, possibly related, troubles dogging Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin. According to the Associated Press, the mayor owes the government almost $90,000 in income taxes for 2003, 2005 and 2006. The unpaid taxes have resulted in liens filed against Davlin's home.
A tax lien is a claim against property which establishes the government as a creditor. This may allow the IRS to collect the taxes owed even if the property owner proceeds into bankruptcy. It is not yet known where on this path Mayor Davlin may have been.
Davlin was the mayor of Springfield since 2003. He had decided not to seek reelection not due to his personal problems, reports the Journal- Register, but because he wanted to leave office before he burned out.
Related Resources:
- Tim Davlin Dead: Springfield Mayor Found Fatally Shot In His Home (Huffington Post)
- If You Don't Pay Your Taxes: Things You Should Know (FindLaw)
- Executor Definition -- What Exactly Does an Executor Do? (FindLaw)
- Coppell, TX Mayor Jayne Peters and Daughter Found Dead (FindLaw's Blotter)