{"id":752624,"date":"2025-11-07T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/?p=752624"},"modified":"2025-11-07T10:33:35","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T16:33:35","slug":"isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/","title":{"rendered":"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-custom-everlit-iframe-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Everlit Audio Player\" src=\"https:\/\/everlit.audio\/embeds\/artl_6PGkeHeRLNP?client=wp&amp;client_version=2.6.0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"80px\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Savannah Phillips never thought suicide would be part of her family\u2019s story. But it\u2019s there, the last line in her father\u2019s obituary, in a plea to others to call a helpline before it\u2019s too late.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a young man, Charles Rust attended high school in Broken Bow and ran track and field in college. As an adult, he struggled with drugs and alcohol, Phillips said, and some of his life choices left him in a lonely place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Two years ago, in a parking lot in Antlers, Rust shot himself with a 9mm handgun and died. He was 70.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhatever drove him to that decision just wasn\u2019t true,\u201d Phillips said. \u201cLots of people loved him. We all make mistakes. We all need Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Phillips\u2019 willingness to talk about her father\u2019s suicide helps shed light on a troubling trend: more older Americans are dying by gun suicide. The rate is particularly high in Oklahoma, and especially in rural counties. Pushmataha County, where Rust lived, had a rate of gun suicide deaths among older adults higher than in any U.S. state, according to an analysis of detailed mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2009 to 2023 by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetrace.org\/2025\/09\/gun-suicide-data-older-americans-men\/\">The Trace and GQ<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Their reporting found Americans 70 and over had the highest suicide rates of any age group, and their rates of suicide have increased in recent years. During this period, 63,836 older Americans died by gun suicide.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles is-style-borders wpnbha show-image image-alignright ts-4 is-1 is-landscape is-style-borders\" style=\"\">\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"736248\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>the latest<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"754196\" class=\"tag-attorney-general tag-cdc tag-covid-19 tag-george-monks tag-measles tag-oklahoma-news tag-oklahoma-state-department-of-health tag-oklahoma-state-medical-association tag-whooping-cough category-health category-publichealth type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2026\/01\/05\/oklahoma-health-department-refuses-to-share-county-level-measles-data\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Oklahoma Health Department Refuses to Share County-Level Measles Data\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 782px) 600px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2026\/01\/05\/oklahoma-health-department-refuses-to-share-county-level-measles-data\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Oklahoma Health Department Refuses to Share County-Level Measles Data<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/author\/paulmonies\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" alt=\"Avatar photo\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Paul-Monies.jpg?resize=48%2C48&amp;ssl=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Paul-Monies-96x96.jpg 2x\" class=\"avatar avatar-48 photo\" height=\"48\" width=\"48\"><\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/author\/paulmonies\/\">Paul Monies<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-05T06:01:00-06:00\">January 5, 2026<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2026-01-05T11:05:42-06:00\">January 5, 2026<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n<p>Gun suicide is a greater killer of men over 70 than car crashes, the analysis showed. Older white men die by gun suicide at the highest rate \u2014 a rate more than triple that of Black and Latino men of the same age, and 19 times the rate of women 70 and over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Oklahoma had the 10th-highest rate among U.S. states at 18.6 per 100,000 residents aged 70 and older (an explanation of The Trace\u2019s methodology can be found online).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Oklahoma also has one of the highest overall gun suicide rates, at 13.6 per 100,000 residents in 2023, the fifth highest among U.S. states, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/vpc.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/2023-State-Overall-Suicide-Rates-ranked-by-rate.pdf\">Violence Policy Center<\/a> data from 2023, the latest available.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No single factor drives the high rates of suicide later in life, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetrace.org\/2025\/09\/gun-suicide-data-older-americans-men\/\">The Trace found<\/a>. Severe illness, pain, financial pressures, isolation, a lack of mental health care, cognitive impairment and the availability of firearms all played a role.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Autopsy and law enforcement reports of older, Oklahoma men who died by suicide sometimes cite terminal illnesses, such as cancer.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Zack Stoycoff, executive director of the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, said among men, there\u2019s more of a stigma around seeking help. It\u2019s important, he said, to screen for mental health issues during physical health services because many of these men are visiting the doctor regularly or receiving treatment for a physical condition.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe title=\"Oklahoma Gun Suicides, Men Age 70+\" aria-label=\"Column Chart\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-daAvr\" src=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/daAvr\/1\/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;\" height=\"412\" data-external=\"1\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">window.addEventListener(\"message\",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(\"iframe\");for(var t in a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"][t]+\"px\";r.style.height=d}}});<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe can do a lot better in addressing mental health in primary care settings,\u201d Stoycoff said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In rural counties, especially, there are fewer services and longer wait times. One mental health provider in Pushmataha County, Bailey Armstrong, said communities need to invest more in resources like transportation, drug treatment and education.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNobody talks about it,\u201d Armstrong said. \u201cThere\u2019s a huge, huge stigma around suicide and it\u2019s almost like people locally think if you say the word suicide, you\u2019re asking for it to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>With additional reporting by Aaron Mendelson of The Trace.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"771\" height=\"771\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=771%2C771&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-700097\" style=\"width:193px;height:193px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=771%2C771&amp;ssl=1 771w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=336%2C336&amp;ssl=1 336w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=140%2C140&amp;ssl=1 140w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=400%2C400&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=200%2C200&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=706%2C706&amp;ssl=1 706w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=100%2C100&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194-771x771.jpg?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><em>Jennifer Palmer has been a reporter with Oklahoma Watch since 2016 and covers education. Contact her at <a href=\"tel:4057610093\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">(405) 761-0093<\/a> or <a href=\"mailto:jpalmer@oklahomawatch.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">jpalmer@oklahomawatch.org<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/jpalmerOKC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">@jpalmerOKC<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles is-style-default wpnbha is-grid columns-3 colgap-1 show-image image-aligntop ts-3 is-3 is-landscape is-style-default\" style=\"\">\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"736248\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>MORE FROM Jennifer Palmer<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"753221\" class=\"tag-brandon-pasley tag-domestic-violence-fatality-review-board tag-jacquelyn-campbell tag-laura-thomas tag-scott-hawkins category-criminaljustice category-domestic-violence type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/24\/domestic-violence-board-chairman-resigns-in-protest\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Domestic Violence Board Chairman Resigns in Protest\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 782px) 400px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/24\/domestic-violence-board-chairman-resigns-in-protest\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Domestic Violence Board Chairman Resigns in Protest<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A decision by the state\u2019s domestic violence board exposed a rift over how a mandatory protective tool is to be used and led chairman and domestic violence advocate Brandon Pasley to resign. <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published updated\" datetime=\"2025-11-24T06:00:00-06:00\">November 24, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"752624\" class=\"tag-charles-rust tag-deaths tag-guns tag-savannah-phillips tag-suicide category-health category-mental-health category-vulnerable-populations type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 782px) 400px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>More older Americans are dying by gun suicide. The rate is particularly high in Oklahoma, and especially in rural counties.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-11-07T06:00:00-06:00\">November 7, 2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-11-07T10:33:35-06:00\">November 7, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"752137\" class=\"tag-anthony-sykes tag-cameron-mcellhiney tag-dave-cuillier tag-gary-knight tag-incident-reports tag-lawsuit tag-mark-thomas tag-oklahoma-city tag-police tag-public-records tag-ron-bacy tag-valerie-littlejohn category-democracy category-democracy-democracy category-government category-transparency type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 782px) 400px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>OKC police are withholding police reports unless there was an arrest, charges or a warrant, alarming transparency advocates. The public access counselor sided with police, allowing the practice to continue and, potentially, spread.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published updated\" datetime=\"2025-10-24T06:00:00-05:00\">October 24, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More older Americans are dying by gun suicide. The rate is particularly high in Oklahoma, and especially in rural counties.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2622484,"featured_media":752646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"gigafact_has_fact_brief":false,"gigafact_remote_fact_brief_post_id":0,"gigafact_remote_sync_timestamp":"","gigafact_remote_sync_status":"","gigafact_remote_sync_response":"","gigafact_has_been_published":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"everlit_article_id":"artl_6PGkeHeRLNP","everlit_hide_embed":false,"everlit_embed_size":"","everlit_generation_settings":{"primary_voice":"35","guest_voice":"48","default_sonic_optimization":false,"default_conversation_mode":false,"default_read_alt_text":false,"default_read_urls":false,"default_read_author_byline":false,"default_publication":"pblc_lV8RK9ULW4x","language":"en-US","intro_mixable":3,"outro_mixable":3,"intro_duration":15,"outro_duration":15,"intro_padding":3,"outro_padding":4,"default_skip_article_image":false,"skip_auto_generation":false,"disable_music":false,"disclaimer":"","disclaimer_voice":"","is_for_subscriber":false,"embed_ui_cover_art":true,"embed_ui_title_intro":"","embed_ui_title_icon":""},"_everlit_article_id":"","_everlit_hide_embed":false,"_everlit_embed_size":"","_everlit_generation_settings":[],"_everlit_content_hash":"7365535eddfd7c40dc2e26744f6de713","_everlit_metadata_hash":"17c0d93665ce0ec273d29fc20c23245b","_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4942,59,20082],"tags":[21400,21398,80,21399,220],"series":[],"coauthors":[401],"class_list":["post-752624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-mental-health","category-vulnerable-populations","tag-charles-rust","tag-deaths","tag-guns","tag-savannah-phillips","tag-suicide","entry"],"fact_brief":null,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide - Oklahoma Watch<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide - Oklahoma Watch\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"More older Americans are dying by gun suicide. The rate is particularly high in Oklahoma, and especially in rural counties.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Oklahoma Watch\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/OklahomaWatch\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-07T12:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-07T16:33:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jennifer Palmer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@jpalmerOKC\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@OklahomaWatch\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jennifer Palmer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jennifer Palmer\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/#\/schema\/person\/1f390a2cf6d59c40ea409ca99894fc79\"},\"headline\":\"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-07T12:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-07T16:33:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\"},\"wordCount\":578,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"Charles Rust\",\"Deaths\",\"Guns\",\"Savannah Phillips\",\"suicide\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Health\",\"Mental Health\",\"Vulnerable Populations\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\",\"name\":\"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide - 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