Family members deal with tragedy
A Pittsburgh man who fatally shot his former girlfriend before killing himself in a cemetery over the weekend was a veteran with suicidal tendencies who had received mental health treatment from the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System, according to court documents.
Nicholas Domek III, 72, shot and killed Mary Jo Kornick, 62, of Freeport on Saturday, state police said.
The two dated for 10 years until they broke up last summer, according to Kornick's daughter, Sherry Kornick, who now lives in North Carolina.
The relationship further deteriorated with Kornick getting a protection from abuse order against Domek in December after she accused him of assaulting her and threatening her life with a handgun.
Domek was charged in Buffalo Township with stalking and attempting to kidnap Kornick. District Judge Wayne Seibel released Domek on an unsecured $15,000 bond and scheduled his next court appearance for last Dec. 19.
But Domek's son, Collin, asked the court to reschedule, explaining in court documents that Domek had attempted to commit suicide and was being treated at the Pittsburgh VA. A certification of Domek's visit to the VA was submitted to the district court records.
“There's a terrible tragedy here, two dead, that could've been prevented,” Collin Domek said Monday.
He said that his father had attempted to commit suicide twice since he was charged with the attempted kidnapping and each time was taken to the Pittsburgh VA for treatment. He added that bipolar disorder was among the things for which his father was being treated.
“They had to see the red flags; even I saw them. They failed him miserably,” Collin Domek said during a phone interview Monday. “It just feels like there were signs that were ignored.”
Read the full story in Tuesday's Butler Eagle
