MANCHESTER — Friends were trying to understand why a Manchester man voted “most likely to succeed” by his Central High classmates and who recently enlisted in the U.S. Army allegedly stabbed a fellow Yale student from Manchester before jumping to his death.
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“You expected him to be a senator,” Emelia Attridge said Thursday of her friend, Tyler Carlisle.

Carlisle, 21, who just graduated from Yale, is suspected of stabbing Alexander Michaud, also 21, before jumping from the ninth floor and landing on a third-floor terrace in New Haven, Conn., on Tuesday, according to police.
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“Knowing him, it was very shocking,” said another friend of Carlisle, Liz Kulig, a former political director for the New Hampshire Democratic Party. “He had a lot to live for, and it was nothing I would have expected.”
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Carlisle and Michaud were friends, according to Attridge.

“I think that’s the biggest question people ask, not just in this case, but the why and the how, and I think that’s part of the grieving process, is you ask why,” said Attridge, a Manchester resident who graduated from Central two years ahead of Carlisle.
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New Haven police officer David Hartman said Thursday that authorities had “a pretty strong sense” of what happened but declined to provide details until the investigation concluded. Police were waiting to re-interview a witness as well as to receive toxicology results on Carlisle, he said.
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“Knowing the reason behind it, it still isn’t going to lessen the pain,” said Kulig, who said she knew Carlisle since he was in first grade when both attended First Congregational Church; they later overlapped at Central. “He’s still gone.”
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Michaud remained at Yale-New Haven Hospital, but a hospital spokesman said his family didn’t want his condition released. The Yale Daily News reported that Michaud was placed in a medically induced coma.
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Michaud graduated from The Derryfield School in 2012, telling graduates at their commencement that they weren’t afraid to tell the world what they wanted and why.

“And the world will look favorably on us for it, and we will find success and happiness there,” Michaud said.
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Mary Halpin Carter, head of school, called Michaud “a talented young man” who accomplished much.

“He received highest honors throughout his time in the upper school, and was a National Honor Society member and National Merit Finalist. In addition to numerous academic awards, he contributed his vocal talent to many music and theater productions, singing with the NH All-State Music Festival for three years. He recently came to campus to visit with Derryfield faculty and staff. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Michaud family, and we join them in hoping that Alexander’s health is fully restored.”
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An attempt to reach the family was unsuccessful.

Central’s 2011 yearbook listed Carlisle as one of four students “most likely to succeed.” Under his senior picture, Carlisle chose a quote from Cicero: “Ability without honor is useless.”
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Friends said Carlisle, who spent at least one year taking online classes through Central, was involved in many school activities, including the FIRST robotics team, the math team and played the harp in the orchestra.
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Carlisle also worked on several political campaigns, including as a field representative for Rick Santorum’s 2012 presidential campaign.

The Rev. Carolyn H. Keilig, interim senior pastor at the First Congregational Church, released a statement: “Tyler Carlisle was a friendly, caring young man, who was known for his gentle soul. He was musical, playing the harp, and involved in the bell choir,” she wrote. “He was an active participant in youth activities, and through childhood and his teen years he played roles in many church pageants. He served as a strong role model to many younger members in the church.
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“He was an Eagle Scout, and it was important to him to be true to this honor. Tyler was an excellent writer and had a bright and promising future ahead of him.

“The entire community of First Congregational Church is deeply saddened by the news of his tragic death and are struggling to make sense of it,” she wrote.
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Union Leader Staff Writer Mark Hayward contributed to this report.
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