Budd Dwyer’s Last Broadcast
Source: iNews
Rober Budd Dwyer was the Treasurer of Pennsylvania from 1981 until 1987 and during that period, the state he represented discovered its state workers had overpaid federal taxes due to errors in state withholding. Many accounting firms competed for a multimillion-dollar contract to determine the compensation to each employee.
In 1986, Dwyer was convicted of taking a bribe from the firm that eventually won the contract and was due to be sentenced for this despite maintaining his innocence throughout the trial. The day before his sentencing, Dwyer called a press conference where he then produced a revolver and took his own life in front of the TV camera’s that would broadcast his death across the state. This photo shows him telling others to stand back moments before he fired on himself.