Coroner Confirms Jelani Day’s Cause Of Death Was Drowning But It’s Still Unknown How He Got In The Water
According to a news release by CNN, LaSalle County Coroner Richard Ploch shared that the 25-year-old graduate student who was found in the Illinois River last month drowned.
RELATED: Coroner Reports Jelani Day’s Organs Were Missing When He Was Found
Jelani Day’s cause of death has been determined, “the manner in which Mr. Day went into the Illinois River is currently unknown,” per CNN. In Monday’s news release, the coroner also stated that “there was no evidence of any (pre-death) injury, such as manual strangulation, an assault or altercation, sharp, blunt, or gunshot injury, infection, tumor, natural disease, congenital abnormality, or significant drug intoxication,” CNN noted.
As we previously reported, Day’s body was discovered after he had been missing for about a month. The young man was last seen at a cannabis dispensary on Aug. 24 and was reported missing the next day. It was said that the coroner identified Day’s body “through forensic dental identification and DNA testing and comparison.”
According to the family, there at least two autopsies: one by the coroner’s office and one from an independent private forensic pathologist hired by the family. However,
the latter has not released any findings, the news site notes.
Press Play Below For More:
RELATED: Jelani Day: What We Know About Aspiring Doctor’s Disappearance