A Black Lives Matter activist killed himself on the front steps of the Ohio Statehouse just minutes before 6 p.m. Monday, according to the Ohio Highway Patrol.
MarShawn McCarrel, 23, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound and there were no witnesses but troopers did see him on the grounds shortly before the suicide, said Patrol Lt. Craig Cvetan.
McCarrel, of Columbus, posted on his Facebook page at 2:37 p.m. Monday: "My demons won today. I'm sorry."
News of McCarrel's death spread quickly across the nation via Twitter, Facebook and other media.
McCarrel is being remembered as an activist who co-founded "Feed the Streets" to hand out home-made lunches to homeless people, was involved in the Black Lives Matter movement and worked with the Ohio Student Association, a social justice group.
In August 2014, McCarrel was among organizers of a protest against the police shooting death of John Crawford III inside a Beavercreek Walmart.
At the time, McCarrel told 10TV: "What we want today is just answers, we want to know what happened, why the officers felt the need to use deadly force."
According to the New York Daily News, McCarrel was recently named one of Radio One's Hometown Champions for his community activism.
Cvetan said the Franklin County Coroner's Office will conduct the autopsy.
(c)2016 the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio
