Suspect in Harassment Case Drinks Malathion and Dies

The death of a 28-year-old Carson man, who drank an unspecified amount of the pesticide malathion just days before he was scheduled to appear in court on charges of harassing a child television star with sexually explicit letters, was ruled a suicide by the Los Angeles County coroner’s office Saturday.

Sheriff’s investigators said Mark Alan Budman drank the lethal dose of malathion July 8 and lingered in the intensive care unit at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center until his death Thursday afternoon.

Budman was charged June 7 with two misdemeanor counts of sending “bizarre letters featuring sexual acts” to Danny Pintauro, who plays the youngest child on the ABC-TV sitcom “Who’s The Boss?” said Deputy City Atty. Alice Hand.

Prosecutors said the messages were sent to the child actor from March 1 to May 31.

Harbor-UCLA Medical Center would not release how much malathion Budman consumed.

Malathion is a pesticide that kills by inhibiting neural transmissions.

The state has been spraying extremely small quantities of malathion over parts of Southern California to control the year-old Mediterranean fruit fly infestation.

At the height of the outbreak earlier this year, the spray zone encompassed 536 square miles. Only 15 square miles around Glassell Park and 16 square miles around the San Gabriel Valley community of Rosemead are now being sprayed. Both areas are scheduled to have their last spraying Monday.

The state’s aerial campaign uses about 2.8 ounces of malathion per acre--an amount that state health officials maintain poses no significant public health threat.

There have been numerous deaths over the years attributed to malathion poisoning around the world, although they all involve enormous doses of the pesticide.

Budman’s suicide is being investigated by the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau, which handles all unusual deaths, said department spokesman Joaquin Herran.