eBay

or_couture · ‎10-12-2018

Hey,

I want to make sure I am doing the right thing.

If you got a note with a heavy suicidal scent from a buyer saying "I have nothing to live for/I wish I was dead ASAP" - what would you do?

Thanks everyone for sharing & helping 🙂

moms**art**window** · ‎10-12-2018

You were true to yourself and listened to your heart and should stand proud.One time i was in a restaurant someone was choking on some meat people were gathered around trying to do Heimlich maneuver having no luck something just made me run across the room reached down the throat and got that meat out "that quick" it would have been to late for the people that took a course in that kind of thing.

gracieallen01 · ‎10-12-2018

Are you acquainted with the person? If so, how well and how long? And, what about a 'husband'?

Your posts make me think there is a whole lot more to the story than just a note, out of the blue, to a complete stranger, talking about suicide.

Not saying 'NO' doesn't mean 'YES'.

The foolishness of one's actions or words is determined by the number of witnesses.

Perhaps if Brains were described as an APP, many people would use them more often.

Respect, like money, is only of 'worth' when it is earned - with all due respect, it can not be ordained, legislated or coerced. Anonymous

a_c_green · ‎10-12-2018

@or_couture wrote:
Yeah I got her address and called her local police dep.

Oh... okay... From the limited info in your original post, I was wondering what you could have told the police in that ZIP code, without something a little more precise like a name and address.

So this was an actual buyer of yours, or did they give you their address in the course of that round of messaging?

epowerbargains · ‎10-12-2018

You did the right thing. It is nice to know that there are people like you who care enough to reach out and try to help someone who may be suffering. Turning it over to the authorities to investigate and take appropriate action was the best course of action and compassionate.

brian@ebay · ‎10-12-2018

@or_couture wrote:

Hey,

I want to make sure I am doing the right thing.

If you got a note with a heavy suicidal scent from a buyer saying "I have nothing to live for/I wish I was dead ASAP" - what would you do?

Hi @or_couture, thank you so much for bringing this to our attention. We've gone ahead and taken steps on our end to get this reported as well.

Brian,
Community Team

cherry*fizz · ‎10-12-2018

OP says message was from a buyer, so I assumed they already had the info.

OP, I think you did a great job. When I was in high school I had a friend threaten suicide, and I called the police in the middle of the night, who went to his house. His mom was mad at me because "he wasn't serious" but I didn't want to take that chance.

gramophone-georg · ‎10-12-2018

@cherry*fizz wrote:
OP says message was from a buyer, so I assumed they already had the info.

OP, I think you did a great job. When I was in high school I had a friend threaten suicide, and I called the police in the middle of the night, who went to his house. His mom was mad at me because "he wasn't serious" but I didn't want to take that chance.

Nobody knows how "serious" the person making the threat actually is except that person.

Chaos is NOT an "industry standard".

nowthatsjustducky · ‎10-12-2018

@cherry*fizz wrote:
OP says message was from a buyer, so I assumed they already had the info.

OP, I think you did a great job. When I was in high school I had a friend threaten suicide, and I called the police in the middle of the night, who went to his house. His mom was mad at me because "he wasn't serious" but I didn't want to take that chance.

Better to be tried by 12 than through one's own inaction allow someone else to be needlessly carried by 6?

If it works, sell it. If it works well, sell it for more. If it doesn't work, quadruple the price and sell it as an antique.

-- Ferengi Rule of Acquisition #80

emerald40 · ‎10-12-2018

@or_couture wrote:
Hey,
I want to make sure I am doing the right thing.
If you got a note with a heavy suicidal scent from a buyer saying "I have nothing to live for/I wish I was dead ASAP" - what would you do?

Send the police to his address ASAP. They are trained in how to deal with this and will transport him to a hospital for evaluation.

My daughter volunteered for Sammaritans and this was what they were told to do. That type of statement meant that they kept talking to him on one line and called the police on another and kept him on the line until they arrived.

emerald40 · ‎10-12-2018

@or_couture wrote:
Ok. That's what I did.
I just feel bad thinking the police might knock on her door at 4am waking her husband and he wouldn't know what's going on... 😕

If he is living in that house then this cannot be a surprise to him that his wife is in crisis.

He cannot be that oblivious.

emerald40 · ‎10-12-2018

@or_couture wrote:
Yeah I got her address and called her local police dep.

About msging, she didn't reply after I replied to her, which got me more worried.

_______________________________

That could be because the police took her to the hospital and she is getting the help she needs,

18704d · ‎10-12-2018

" I don't quite understand why you feel your personal safety would be in jeporady if you responded in kind ? Tulips"

--------

The possibilty is there that it could be a very unstable person, who is not suicidal.

And, as said before, if the police showed up at their house, and caused considerable embarassment to them, in front of their family...

And you were the only one they stated this 'threat' to...

Their anger could be focussed on you.

I had an online stalker about 20 years ago.

And it's even easier, nowadays, for them to find out so very much more about you now... and your habits, where you work and the places you frequent.

Lynn

Lynn

You love me for everything you hate me for

.

emerald40 · ‎10-12-2018

@z240dude wrote:
Sadly in this very litigious society I tend to agree. Who knows what confidentiality rules you might violate. My sugggestion would be to CALL EBAY immediately and let them handle the situation. Don't intervene as you could say something to help, but in their altered, drunken or drug addled mental state they could TOTALLY hear something else. I have had this happen in person at bars where I try to help a drunk and then get accused of doing something that I neither said nor did. If they then go on to kill themselves ,then the family could SUE and you may lose everything even though you were trying to help. It is terrible but you really can't risk yours or your family's future by intervening.

I would think this would fall under the Good Sammaritan rules which would absolve you from any liability.

18704d · ‎10-12-2018

"Send the police to his address ASAP. They are trained in how to deal with this and will transport him to a hospital for evaluation."

--------

Conversely,

I would take that message to My local police department.

And listen to the advice which they recommend.

Lynn

Lynn

You love me for everything you hate me for

.

emerald40 · ‎10-12-2018

@18704d wrote:

"Send the police to his address ASAP. They are trained in how to deal with this and will transport him to a hospital for evaluation."
--------

Conversely,
I would take that message to My local police department.

And listen to the advice which they recommend.

Lynn

When you are dealing with a person in crisis who is suicidal you do not have that luxury to cross your Ts and dot your Is. You need to get him help fast and then let the authorities and the doctors sort it out afterwards.

I even texted my daughter who volunteered on the Samaritan hotline for years and she said that OP did it exactly right. And if they got that type of call this was how they were trained to react.

Certain words out of the person's mouth threatening to do themselves harm, meant immediate action. Don't even call your supervisor first. Call the authorities immediately. Get it in the hands of the people trained to deal with this.