Page 8 - Florida Sentinel 2-16-18

Local
Mental Illness, Depression Played Role In Man’s Death
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
The mother of a young Tampa man killed in De- cember attributes his death to mental illness. She said he had begun to exhibit symptoms of depression of the illness about a week be- fore he died.
Ms. Marshana Mayo
knows that on December 21st, her son, Eric N. Nor- ton, Jr., went into an East Tampa Pawn Shop. And, she knows that the clerk in the business fatally wounded him.
Ms. Mayo said, “When
all of this happened, I was on the telephone with Gra- cepoint trying to find out how to get him Baker Acted. He was at my mother’s house and I got the call that he (Eric) had taken my mother’s car. The next call I received was that he had been killed.”
She was told that Nor- ton had gone into the busi- ness to purchase a gun. But, he was turned away be- cause he didn’t have any identification. She was told that he left and then came back. The guns he allegedly pointed at the clerk had been taken from the display
ERIC NORTON, JR. 11/23/1997 —- 12/21/2017
in the pawn shop, she said. The clerk in the business fatally wounded Norton. The case is pending a ruling by the Hillsborough County
State Attorney’s Office. Ms. Mayo also said Norton grew up in High- land Avenue Church Of
Christ and was attending at the time of his death.
She further said he was always humble, never vio- lent, and didn’t have an ar- rest record. As a teenager, the young man had aspira- tions of playing profes- sional football.
Prior to graduating from Hillsborough High School in 2015, he posted his fu- ture plans.
The following ex- cerpt was taken from his FaceBook page.
“My name is Eric Norton and I’m the middle child of 5 sib- lings. I grew up with a hard life but that never stopped me, my father was never around but my step father raised me. My biological fa- ther passed away the year of 2014. My great grandmother passed away the same year a few months before my father. Me and my mother have a great re- lationship but I stay with my godmother. I’ve always loved foot- ball and always been good at it. I’m the type of player that believes anything is possible as long as its still time on the clock.
“I’m a God-fearing person. Also, I’m a soon-to-be father. I’ve always wanted better. I made a few bad deci- sions in life but God blessed me with a gift to play football and also the opportunity to play football, so I don’t wanttoletitgoto waste.
“Any college that re- cruits me will have nothing but the best of me. This is my first year and my last year of playing football, so I have to show out my senior year. I wasn’t able to play my 9th, 10th, and 11th grade years because my grades were not very good, but I have made a complete turn- around.
“I thank God. I just want to make a name for myself and the streets is not where I want to make that name. I have a passion
for football like no other and always dreamed of becoming a NFL legend winning Super Bowls. I go to Hillsborough High School and God will- ing, we are going to win a championship this season. My num- ber will be #37 and I play running back. I look up to Frank Gore and Adrian Peterson.”
However, things didn’t work out as he had planned. Instead of going to college, he married his son’s mother, went to work, and got an apartment. But, the marriage didn’t last.
Ms. Mayo said he was depressed over the failed marriage and wanted his family back.
As time passed, Norton worked on other jobs. He had landed a job as a cus- tomer service representa- tive and was excited about that.
She said about a week before his death, Norton was jumped and his eye was damaged. He went to the hospital for treatment. She believes blows to his head may have contributed to his state of mind.
In the days leading up to his death, Norton believed someone was following him and that others were con- spiring to hurt him. “He was writing notes to his sis- ters and asking if they knew who he was. He was talking about Jesus and encourag- ing others to get their lives together.”
Ms. Mayo shares her story to benefit others.
“Depression and mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of. It is associated with distress and/or prob- lems functioning in social, work, or family activities. It causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relaps- ing and remitting, or occur as a single episode.
“Our prayers go out to the families who may have loved ones or friends who are experiencing these signs and symptoms. Please continue to pray for the family and friends of Eric, as we try to bring aware- ness to others,” Ms. Mayo said.
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