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Stuart Irby

January 18, 2012 by · Comments Off on Stuart Irby 

Stuart IrbyStuart Irby, Businessman Stuart Irby was found dead in his Jackson home Tuesday night, the victim of an apparent suicide, police said.

Irby, 58, was found hanging by his caretaker, authorities said. An ambulance was called to the northeast Jackson home on Stuart Place at 8:05 p.m., and Irby was pronounced dead at 9:04 p.m.

“There is no suspicion of foul play,” police spokesperson Colendula Green said.

Irby was the grandson of Stuart C. Irby Sr., who founded the Jackson-based electrical equipment firm. He guided the company from 1984 to 2005, when it was sold to Sonepar.

Irby had been in the media spotlight since he and his wife, Karen, survived a two-car crash that killed two young doctors in February 2009. Karen Irby, who prosecutors said was driving drunk that night, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2010 and is now under house arrest.

Stuart Irby later settled a lawsuit arising from the accident.

Irby continued to face legal problems, including one misdemeanor DUI arrest and a felony cyberstalking charge that later was dismissed because of Irby’s health.

Irby had suffered permanent brain injury from the 2009 crash, and had lacked the mental capacity to distinguish between right and wrong, according to doctors who described his condition during the criminal proceedings.

On Tuesday, when Irby’s caretaker last spoke with him after 4 p.m., “there was nothing out of the ordinary,” Green said.

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