Health

Government Officials Renew Call For Focus On Mental Health, Homelessness Following Cemetery Slaying

The Sunday morning slaying of 80-year-old Egbert Thomas, Sr., while visiting the grave site of his deceased wife at the Christiansted public cemetery on St. Croix, by a man who is reportedly "mentally ill and homeless," according to police reports, has shaken the territory, including some of its leaders. Two officials have given voice to the matters of the lack of mental health services and homelessness facing the territory in the days after the killing. On Wednesday, Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett issued a formal statement about the slaying. "The entire Virgin Islands community is shocked and saddened by the tragic death of Mr. Egbert Thomas, Sr. Our thoughts and prayers are with his entire immediate and extended family, and the men and women at the Department of Public Works, where Mr. Thomas was a long-time employee," Plaskett wrote. The freshman congresswoman then highlighted the ongoing problem of the lack of mental health treatment many in the territory's homeless population ...