Clinton Threat Suspect Kills Mother, Commits Suicide

A man suspected of writing a threatening letter to President Clinton killed his mother and himself Friday after wounding two deputies who were investigating the case, officials said.

Michael Mower, 36, killed his 70-year-old mother, Rose, then himself inside a motel room where the two lived, Montgomery County Sheriff Gary Haines said.

The deputies, who were acting on behalf of the Secret Service, were being treated in a hospital emergency room where they were listed in good condition, said Dick Rathmell, special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Cincinnati office.

The two were shot as they tried to talk to Mower about the letter.

Clinton was vacationing this week in Southern California, but he plans to attend the Cleveland Indians’ opening-day game on Monday.

White House Press Secretary Dee Dee Myers said: “We don’t talk about specific threats or the volume of threats other than to say that that’s an unfortunate part of public life. It’s something the Secret Service deals with, and they deal with it very effectively. The President is always grateful for their professionalism.”

Authorities fired pepper gas and tear gas into the room after Mower refused to come out. The standoff lasted about 2 1/2 hours.

Rathmell said Mower shot at the deputies when they came to question him about a “rambling, threatening” letter that officials believe was sent to Clinton by Mower. The letter was received at the White House on March 23, he said.

Rathmell would not discuss the contents of the letter, adding that the writer said “he believed he knew of assassination plans.”

“He wrote in his letter to the President that he had a gun,” Haines said.