Soap Star Suicide: His Enemies Say They Didn’t Cause His Death

Nick Santino committed suicide after making the heartbreaking decision to euthanize his pit-bull Rocco. But now the condo board that he said pressured him to do it is dodging any blame.

Nick Santino shocked friends and family after he committed suicide on Jan. 24. It was revealed that he felt he couldn’t live after euthanizing his pit-bull Rocco. According to Nick, the management of his Upper West Side condo building banned pit-bulls and started to harass him about his dog, which drove him to put his pet down and take his own life on the same day. Now the condo board in question is scrambling to distance his suicide from their actions!

Marilyn Fireman, who is on the board, says the condo’s policies cannot be thought to have been a direct influence on 47-year-old Nick’s suicide, the New York Post reports.

“You just assumed that [his suicide] was a result of a board’s decision,” she says.

Do YOU think the condo board should be held responsible for Nick’s death, HollywoodLifers?

– William Earl

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thank you for your comment Debbie, and I am sorry for the loss of your brother. I also had a loved one die of suicide.

I say suicide can be prevented because mental illness can be prevented. How do people become so mentally ill that they feel as if they don’t have no other choice, but to kill themselves? The scientific community would say mental illness is a result of biological misfirings in the brain, and therefore doctors prescribe ample amounts of Prozac and Zoloft. These “supposed” cures for depression actually exacerbate suicidal thoughts. I believe that when one comes to the point of suicide they have lost all meaning in life. But, meaning in life can’t be prescribed by a pill. Meaning is what we derive from our work and our loved ones. Perhaps, Santino felt no meaning in life with the small roles he got in acting and the fact that he was lonely! He had no wife, only his dog. Once his dog was gone, it seemed that he was all alone. With no meaning in his life, he felt he had no other choice, but suicide. Obviously, I don’t know Santino, but this is my educated guess.

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He didnt need to put the dog down, give it away – putting animals down is for when they are sick…Something wasnt right with for sure…

I don’t think the condo Board should be blamed for his death. The man was obviously depressed. Euthanizing his dog was the last straw. Men who are depressed typically hide their symptoms, but family members and friends need to be more proactive when they see a loved one who is depressed. Suicide can always be prevented, there is always counseling. Nick Santino had a lot to live for! He was very handsome and he had talent as an actor.

Suicide can not always be prevented…. This is a mental disorder and if someone is so depressed they will do anything to take their life. Have you ever been so depressed or upset you have thought about suicide? I think most people out there have, but when push come to shove most people cannot do it. So really think how upset someone must be to do it. I do know this from experience my brother killed himself when he was 21. I think having to get rid of his dog was the last straw. May he RIP and his family not blame themselves for his actions. It is a mental illness..

He may have felt pressured since his bldg didn’t allow dogs, but there is no evidence that he had to euthanize the dog. There are many animal rescue groups etc. that he could have contacted to take the dog or help him find it a new home. A stable person doesn’t kill his dog impulsively then kill himself.

Perhaps the tenant board members could have responded more sympathetically but they are not responsible for his suicide. He made the choice to kill his dog. An indictment of our lack of personal responsibility in contemporary society. Always looking to find a villain rather than looking in the mirror.