Sailor Gets 5 Yrs for Assisting Superior's Suicide

Sailor Gets 5 Yrs for Assisting Superior's Suicide
Aug 06, 2012
The Virginian-Pilot
by Kathy Adams

VIRGINIA BEACH -- A Circuit Court judge this morning sentenced a former Navy sailor to five years in prison for helping his superior commit suicide.

Paul Stephen Bricker, 27, pleaded guilty April 4 to voluntary manslaughter in the July 2009 death of Gerard Curran. Bricker, a petty officer second class at the time, testified Curran led him to believe he was ill and asked him to help him commit suicide so his family would still receive death benefits from the Navy.

Curan, a 45-year-old chief, was Bricker's superior and mentor, Bricker said.

Bricker said he initially refused Curran's request but eventually agreed as Curran became more desperate. Curran had been having marital problems, abusing alcohol and had stabbed himself in the chest in April 2009, Bricker's defense attorney, Suzanne Moushegian, said in court.

According to court testimony, Curran and Bricker met in First Landing State Park, where Curran strangled himself with a yellow physical therapy band. When he passed out, Bricker stabbed him in the chest with his diving knife, gathered his belongings and left, according to the testimony.
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