Although police in Tarpon Springs, Fla., said there was "no question" that Deborah Jeane Palfrey committed suicide by hanging others are now saying that she was murdered to stop her from naming high-ranking political names.
Just one day after police ruled the death of Deborah Jeane Palfrey the "D.C. Madam" a suicide by hanging, Hustler magazine publisher, free-speech advocate and supporter of Palfrey, Larry Flynt, has come out to say her death was actually the result of murder. Flynt says it was probably the act of someone who feared her releasing some very important names on her list of clients.
"I think the media should be very cautious in treating this as a suicide," Flynt told FOXNews.com in a telephone interview from his Beverly Hills office.
When asked whether or not her death was actually a murder Flynt said:
"I personally believe that's what happened, but I have no proof."
Mr. Flynt worked very hard to help keep Palfrey's story public and worked with her and investigative reporter Dan Moldea to break the story that the phone number of Sen. David Vitter, R-La., was among those numbers in Palfrey's client list. Vitter had previously campaigned on a "family values" platform before being caught soliciting prostitution. Vitter later apologized saying "This was a very serious sin."
Flynt said of the suicide
She did not have the demeanor of the type of person that would carry certain signs of suicide, like being withdrawn or depressed. You know, those are the kinds of signs that you look for. She didn't display any of those traits. ... She was very friendly. ... Very bright. She was by no means a dummy. She knew what she was doing.
He said he believes she was just about to name some names and would have probably avoided prison time completely, leaving no real excuse for her to want to die and giving major incentive for someone to murder her to keep her quiet.
"She had a lot of names, and I know she was holding on to them for a reason," Flynt said. He said he knew some of the clients' names, and they include big-hitters in the political and media worlds. None of those names came to light, though, because they didn't fit the mold that Flynt was pushing for: politicians who said one thing and did another. Only Vitter, Flynt said, appeared to match that description.
Flynt hints that the names on the list are huge and would have caused a major scandal.
"Let me put it this way, there were more Democrats on it than Republicans," he said, supporting his theory that the only reason this case was of interest was because of the number of Democrats who could be targeted by the Bush administration.
As with most high-profile court cases these days, this one too will not end without some speculation, rumor and outright controversy. Did the D.C. Madam commit suicide or was she murdered to keep her silent?
it would make total sense in these crazy times that a group of high-ranking public officials would sacrifice the life of Palfrey in order to keep their names clear. This may be a 'tinfoil hat alert' type of thought but honestly, it would not surprise me if it was true.
