Skidmore grad who killed family hinted at suicide in notes

PHOTOGRAPHER: The Associated Press

Authorities say a suburban New York man and Skidmore College graduate who killed his family and himself left behind notes indicating his impending suicide.

The Journal News reported today that investigators also say that 50-year-old Sam Friedlander bludgeoned his wife with a wooden rolling pin and not a piece of furniture leg, as initially reported by police.

Sam Friedlander was a 1983 Skidmore graduate with a bachelor’s degree in government. He worked from 1992-94 as an assistant district attorney in Suffolk County.

According to the newspaper, investigators say Friedlander sent two letters to a family member and left another note in his law office stipulating who should inherit his belongings. Investigators say the notes did not reveal his state of mind or his intent to kill his family.

Friedlander beat his wife to death last week in their Cross River home. He used a shotgun to kill his two children in their beds and to commit suicide.