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Corrected: Owyhee County coroner rules death of Wyoming man as "undetermined"
After more than two months, the Elmore County Sheriff's Department investigators are no closer to solving the mysterious drowning of a Wyoming man.
Owyhee County Coroner Harvey Grimme has ruled the death of drowning victim, Dewey W. Lee, Sr., 42, of Rawlins, Wyo. as undetermined.
Lee's body was discovered by a local fisherman close to the Loveridge boat launch near Bruneau over the Memorial Day weekend. He had been reported missing by the dispatcher of Triple L Transport where Lee was employed as a driver.
The tractor trailer rig driven by Lee was found parked on the eastbound on ramp of Exit 121 near Glenns Ferry on May 11.
Narcotics and alcohol were discovered in blood and tissue samples taken during Lee's autopsy, according to Elmore County Detective Mike Barclay. "We didn't get anything more than what we already had," he said, indicating the autopsy report could not supply information as to how or why Lee entered the Snake River.
Because of how the body was handled after discovery, important evidence might have been lost before reaching Flahiff Funeral Chapel in Homedale, where the county coroner performs autopsies, Grimme indicated.
According to Grimme, the Owyhee County Sheriff's Department failed to request his presence at the scene. Instead, the body was transported in a strapped down body bag to Murphy in a face down position and that was the first opportunity Grimme had to view the victim's body.
Failure by the Owyhee County Sheriff's Office in contacting the coroner prior to transporting deceased individuals from the scene of discovery is an ongoing problem, Grimme noted. Attempts to resolve the issue have been unsuccessful, he said.
However, Owyhee County Sheriff Gary Aman says state code does not require a coroner be called to the scene of an "unattended death" and that most rural counties would likely transport victims to the coroner.
In the case of Lee's death, Aman believes no important evidence was lost during transport of the body. The body was taken to the Sheriff's Office and turned over to Grimme for transport to Homedale that same day.
Aman said time and geographical constraints often make it difficult to have the coroner present at the scene of an unattended death.
There were no signs of "obvious" trauma to Lee's body except for ones that would be expected after being dragged downstream by currents for nearly 25 miles, Grimme indicated.
And so the mystery continues. Why was Lee's truck parked along I-84 near Glenns Ferry? Why was a stack of his clothing, positively identified by his wife, found at the beet dump in Glenns Ferry several days after his disappearance? Where and how did Lee enter the river?
With the cause of death ruled as "undetermined", the Elmore County Sheriff's Department, which has taken the lead role of the investigation into Lee's death, will place the case in its cold case files. "These types of cases (where cause of death is ruled a 'undetermined') will always stay open," said Barclay, adding that the Sheriff's department will look into the case periodically if or when more information about the death of Dewey Lee becomes available.
Posters exhibiting Lee's picture and a photo of his truck, along with the physical description of both Lee and his semi truck have been distributed across the United States by two truckers, one from Glenns Ferry and another from Arizona, in hopes someone might have recalled seeing or had talked to Lee just prior to the time of his death.