McVeigh Friend Attempted Suicide

I N D I A N A P O L I S, June 7 -- A federal death row inmate who befriendedTimothy McVeigh attempted suicide the night before the OklahomaCity bomber was executed, the inmate's attorney said today.

David Hammer, who is diabetic, tried to kill himself byinjecting insulin directly into one of his veins, but the attemptwas detected and he was treated, said attorney Ronald Travis.

Officials at the U.S. Penitentiary in Terre Haute, where McVeighwas executed on June 11, would not confirm or deny the report,citing privacy concerns.

Travis said he had gotten no warning that his client wasconsidering hurting himself. "I know he was deeply troubled by it[execution]. I know that he and Mr. McVeigh apparently had becomevery close," Travis said.

Haunted by Own Date With Death

In a daily journal published on a death row inmates' Internetsite, Hammer wrote that he made the suicide attempt the night ofJune 10. McVeigh was put to death by injection at 7 a.m. local time the nextday.

"I keep wondering how long until my own date with theexecutioner will arrive," Hammer wrote. "I wish I were dead rightnow, but I'm not. Death would be a welcome relief."

Dan Dunne, spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, would notspeak specifically about Hammer. He said inmates requiring dailyinjections have the necessary equipment brought to their cells andare allowed to administer the medicine themselves. The equipment isthen returned to prison personnel.

Hammer was sentenced to death for strangling his cellmate at thefederal prison at Allenwood, Pa. Before that, he had faced a totalof 1,200 years for crimes that included attempted murder andkidnapping.

Hammer has said that he and McVeigh met when they were beingflown to the prison at Terre Haute, and they later had adjacentcells.

Hammer has already faced one execution date, Nov. 15, 2000. Theexecution was delayed to allow him to appeal his sentence. No newdate has been set.