Veteran's suicide resonates with loved ones, law enforcement, veterans officials

‘It wasn’t Ryan anymore’:
Three months after his death, Ryan Nelson’s suicide resonates with loved ones, law enforcement, veterans officials
WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 2013
JUSTIN GLAWE
BEMIDJI PIONEER

A single shot.

It was the only sound that came from 417 Central Ave. SE on the night of Feb. 9, after an hours-long standoff. And other than his own thoughts, it was the last thing Ryan George Nelson heard before the bullet pierced through his chest, killing the 34-year-old U.S. Navy veteran.

The shot came from his own gun and Nelson himself pulled the trigger. It marked the end of a life that saw the birth of two children, the end of a relationship with a fiance, the end of a neighborhood disruption and, perhaps, the beginning of a discussion. Nelson had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

“I don’t know what we could have done differently,” Bemidji Police Chief Mike Mastin said a little more than a month after Nelson’s death. “Through our training we have to establish contact somehow. We can’t just leave him there.”

Beltrami County Veterans Service Coordinator Scotty Allison wondered if having a veteran available to talk with Nelson on the night of his death would have been an asset to police, and a life-saver for Nelson.
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