The circumstances of Dolan’s death are not yet known, but former colleagues speculate he may have committed suicide.
“We don’t know why James took his own life; we do know, however, he long suffered from PTSD from his time serving in the Marines during the Iraq War. It was an experience that affected him in multiple ways,” wrote Trevor Timm, executive director of the Freedom of Press Foundation, on Tuesday. Dolan worked for the foundation until 2015.
