08/02/2025
Poll: Below is a police report and an explanation from the criminal. Question: do you think the answer is honest and authentic? Answer in the comments- we are exploring an app idea.
THE POLICE REPORT
Police say a 50-year-old man shot himself in the chest after pushing his 80-year-old father through a glass door.
Just before 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Burlington Police officers responded to Loaldo Drive for a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers found Matthew Carr had sustained a single gunshot wound to the chest.
According to the police investigation, Matthew Carr was involved in a domestic dispute with his father, Thomas Carr. During the struggle, say police, the younger Carr armed himself with a loaded handgun and threatened his father. It became physical when Thomas Carr attempted to disarm his son. During the struggle, Matthew Carr allegedly pushed his father through the glass door, at which point, police say Matthew turned the gun on himself.
Matthew Carr was taken to Fletcher Allen Health Care, where his is receiving treatment for the gunshot wound.
Matthew Carr has been cited on charges of first-degree aggravated assault and reckless endangerment.
THE ESSAY FROM THE MAN ARRESTED
Milton Today
Why I Walk This Path
I grew up the fifth of seven children. But even in a full house, I often felt alone. I was the scapegoat, the odd one out. While others found their place, I was cast as the problem, and carried that shame for years.
That kind of isolation, especially when it comes from the people meant to love you, leaves a mark. It makes you question your worth and your place in the world. For me, that confusion led to a breaking point.
In 2014, I hit a moment of deep despair. One night, after an argument with my father, I made a choice that could have ended my life. I survived. Many don’t. And from that moment, everything changed.
Since then, I’ve been on a long, painful, but ultimately meaningful journey back to mental health. I found that healing comes from making meaning of it. For me, that meaning came through giving.
That’s why I volunteer. That’s why I serve. Not for recognition, but because giving allows me to feel good about who I am. It’s a way to rewrite the narrative I was handed and reclaim a sense of worth.
And let me be clear: I share this now to own my story so others can’t. There are people trying to weaponize this part of my here. But when you’ve walked through that kind of fire, you stop letting shame make your decisions.
Anyone who would use a moment of profound suffering as a weapon says far more about themselves than about me. It shows a lack of humanity I won’t carry as my burden.
We’re all walking a hero’s journey. We all carry pain, shame, wounds from childhood. That’s why I try to lead with empathy. That’s why I speak up when others are unfairly judged. And that’s why I fight for Milton.
Not for sympathy, but for truth. For connection. For anyone who might need to know they’re not alone.
