Casefile True Crime - Case 43: Keith Warren

Episode Date: January 22, 2017

The summer of 1986 was a busy one for 19-year-old Silver Spring resident, Keith Warren. Having recently graduated from John F. Kennedy High School, Keith worked two jobs to save money for college. Popular and sociable, he spent his spare time hanging out with friends and was excited about what the future held. --- For all credits and sources please visit casefilepodcast.com/case-43-keith-warren

Have you ever tried BBQ on BBQ? Picture this. Freshly prepared crispy seasoned chicken that's tossed in a smoky barbecue glaze and topped with a creamy barbecue sauce. Can't picture it? Well you can try it now at Tim's. Get our new BBQ crispy chicken loaded bowls and wraps for a limited time. Silver Spring is part of Montgomery County in the state of Maryland, USA. It has a population of about 70,000 people and is located about a 40 minute drive south of Maryland's largest city, Baltimore. Silver Spring is also only about a 20 minute drive north from the nation's capital, Washington DC. Silver Spring was the home of 19 year old Keith Warren. Keith was tall, handsome, bright, sociable and extremely likable. It was the summer of 1986. Keith had just graduated from Kennedy High School and was looking forward to starting college in North Carolina. He was spending the summer enjoying time with friends and working two jobs. Keith made friends quickly and easily and in those first few months of the summer he had made friends with some disreputable people, some of whom were rumored to have involvement with drugs. Keith Warren was born on the 9th of April 1967 in Kansas. His parents were Mary and Cleo Warren. A few months after Keith's birth the Warren family moved to Durham, North Carolina. In August 1977 Mary and Cleo divorced. In 79 Mary moved to Silver Spring, Maryland with Keith and his younger sister Sherry. Mary later remarried becoming Mary Cooey.

On the Tuesday the 29th of July 1986 Keith was at home at 3810 Tremaine Terrace Silver Spring. Keith still lived with his sister Sherry and his mother Mary Cooey. However he was preparing to move back to Durham to attend North Carolina Central University. Keith's father Cleo still resided in Durham where he was a major in the Durham Police Department. Keith hoped to mend his relations with his father that had suffered since the divorce almost 10 years earlier. That Tuesday Keith received a phone call after which he left home to hang out with some friends. When he hadn't returned home the next day Mary started making some calls around town but she struck it up. No one had heard from Keith or knew where he was. Mary called the Wheaton Glenmont station of the Montgomery County Police. She didn't have any luck there either. They said they couldn't take a report until Keith had been missing for 48 hours. On Thursday the 31st of July 1986 two days after Keith had gone missing. EMTs and paramedics from the Kensington Fire and Rescue Station responded to a 911 call. The call was made by Claudia Lawson who said there had been a suicide in the basement of 14655 Timewick Drive Silver Spring. This address is only about 320 metres west of Keith's house. The occupant of 14655 Timewick Drive was Chip Wynn. His girlfriend was the caller Claudia Lawson and there was a second mental present at the house with them. Paramedics knocked on the door but it took a while before anyone answered. Chip, Claudia and the other male were having a discussion amongst themselves.

When they did eventually answer, paramedics requested to be taken down to the victim. Chip, Claudia and the other male said the victim wasn't in the basement. He was in the woods, out the back of the house, only a short distance away. So paramedics requested to be shown where exactly the victim was in the woods but Chip and the other male declined. They told Claudia to go. As Claudia escorted the paramedics she explained that she had been walking her dog through the woods and that that's when she came upon the victim hanging from a tree. When they got to the scene they discovered the body of Keith Warren. There was nothing the paramedics could do for him. He had already passed away. They stayed back to preserve the scene and awaited the arrival of the police. Officer Luther Leverett from the Wheaton Glenmont station of the Montgomery County police arrived on scene. Not long after arriving he said, why would this have to happen on my lunch break? Detective Beasley attended the scene and the medical examiner Dr John Rogers was also notified.

After a quick look at the scene and taking a few photos, Detective Beasley and Officer Leverett ruled the death as a suicide. The medical examiner Dr Rogers agreed. The following is what Officer Leverett wrote in his report of the incident and on reading his report word for word here. Investigation by the writer, Officer Leverett, revealed that the complainant, Claudia Lawson, while walking her dog discovered the victim hanging from a tree. The complainant returned home and summoned the police. The writer arrived on the scene and observed the body of a young black male hanging via a rope with his feet on the ground in a sitting posture. Wheaton investigation was notified along with the county coroner. Detective Beasley and Dr Rogers arrived on the scene.

A neighborhood was conducted by the writer and Detective Beasley and ID was made by Rodney Lee Kendall, 3845 Tremaine Terrace, a fellow classmate. An attempt to notify the next of kin at the residence was negative. The next door neighbor, Barbara Nichols, 3812 Tremaine Terrace, was shown a picture of the victim and ID saying, A work number for the mother was obtained and the neighbor Nichols called and spoke with the mother and left a message to contact the writer. Examination of the scene by Dr Rogers, Detective Beasley and the writer showed no evidence of foul play. The victim had in his pants pocket a picture ID school pass with the name Keith Warren. The victim tied the rope to the base of a tree and made several loops. The other end of the rope was looped around a smaller tree and was thrown between the fork at the top and the noose was made.

The victim apparently used the log to jump off and his body weight completed his intent. I'll leave off a celebrity's report there for now. I'll read the rest later in the episode. Next, let's hear the account of Dallas Lip. Dallas Lip was a firefighter with the Montgomery County and was also trained as an emergency medical technician, EMT. He had previously been a firefighter in the United States Air Force. He was assigned to medic at Kensington station on the 31st of July 1986 and was among the first responders on scene prior to police arrival. The following is Dallas Lip's account taken directly from his affidavit. I was assigned to medic 7 at Kensington station 25 and my unit was dispatched to an area in Silver Spring, Maryland,

to respond to a call reporting a possible attempted suicide by hanging. When we arrived at the address given there was no one waiting to guide us to the victim. When we knocked on the door there was a long pause before anyone answered. The occupants, two males and a female, carried on some discussion among themselves about whether any of them had called. And then told us the victim was back in the woods. One of them reluctantly escorted us to the site. As we approached the site we determined from the appearance of the body that it was too late to assist the victim, as the color of the skin and the facial features indicated that the victim had been dead for some time.

The paramedic went alone to investigate further while the rest of the team stayed back in order not to disturb the site. Our training as rescue workers taught us to be aware of potential criminal activity and preserve the site for police investigation. I was standing approximately 20 feet away from the body from where I could carefully observe the scene while awaiting the arrival of police. My training as an EMT included training with respect to attempted hanging. It struck me that this was not the typical scene of a suicide by hanging. First, the body was hung from a small tree about 4 to 6 inches in diameter, hardly sufficient to support the weight of the body, as the tree had bent over to the point that the victim's knees were flexed to approximately a 45 degree angle.

Second, there was nothing at the scene for the victim to stand on or from which he could have jumped. Finally, the rope was fastened to the tree in an unusual manner. Running from the victim's neck through a fork in the tree that would have been about 8 to 10 feet off the ground had the tree been erect. Down to the base of the tree where it wrapped around the tree a few times. And then it went horizontally about one foot off the ground, running across to a larger tree, approximately 20 feet away from the tree that suspended the victim. The rope appeared to me to be arranged in a way more conducive to hoisting a heavy load than for an attempted suicide. In fact, my impression at the time was that this looked like a lynching. When the police arrived, the officer in charge of the fire rescue response spoke to the police officer explaining what we had found,

our actions to that point, and our unit identifications in case further follow-up was required. I was surprised that we heard nothing further. We will leave Dallas Sleeps after David there. No autopsy or toxicology tests were performed. There was no crime scene examination. Witnesses report that the area wasn't even roped off. People were milling about and walking directly through the site. Anti-wine coolers were located in the vicinity, but they weren't taken as evidence.

There's no mention of them in the police report at all. Keith's car was found parked in the car park of the Georgian Colonies Clubhouse, Silver Spring, where the community center, swimming pool and tennis courts are located. The walk from the clubhouse to the tree is about 500 meters northwest. Police theorize that Keith parked his car at the clubhouse, then walked to the tree with the 40-foot-long rope. He's backpacked with some cassette tapes and the wine, where he then killed himself. In case you're wondering, yes, there were many closest spots to park his car. It's your average suburban neighborhood.

The reason why he decided the park where he did has never been able to be explained. Police organized Keith's body to be removed from the scene and sent to Collins Funeral Home in Silver Spring. Their protocol was to send the body to the closest funeral home. However, the closest funeral home were going to be delayed getting to the scene, so they contacted Collins, which is the next closest. Keith's family state that the police gave instructions to Collins Funeral Home to have Keith's body imbarmed immediately. This is denied by the Montgomery police. They state they did not order Keith's body to be imbarmed and that the imbarming was not done until permission was given by Keith's family.

This is denied by Keith's family, whose state they never gave permission for imbarment. Keith's family hadn't even been notified of his death at this point. They had no idea what had happened. They weren't notified until hours later. Imbarming is the art of preserving human remains by treating them with chemicals to prevent decomposition. Mary Cooley was at work and she did receive a call from the neighbor who Officer Leverett spoke to, Barbara Nichols. Mary worked as a pathologist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Barbara was upset on the phone but wouldn't tell Mary why.

All she would say is that Mary had to contact Officer Leverett. Mary made the call, however she was told Leverett was busy on another job and wouldn't be available for at least two hours. It was two hours later, now about five hours in total since Keith's body was found, that Officer Leverett visited Mary at work. He informed her Keith had committed suicide and asked if there were any reasons why he would want to end his life. Mary was distraught. She couldn't think of any reason for Keith to commit suicide. He had never displayed any signs of suicidal behavior. He had never harmed or attempted to harm himself.

He had never even threatened to harm himself. He didn't suffer from depression. He was a happy teenager looking forward to college. In her distraught state, Mary tried to search for a reason and thought back to any disagreements there may have been. Officer Leverett placed this information in his report, which I'll read the rest of now. Again, this is word for word. Dr Rogers released the body to Collins Funeral Home, address 500 University Boulevard Silver Spring. No autopsy was ordered.

All evidence indicated suicide. On July 29th, 86, the father called and told the son that he would be in Maryland on July 31st to take the car back. That was the last day anyone in the family saw or heard from the son. The victim felt that his father showed no love towards him and that his father was very demanding. While visiting his father nearing one year ago, the son had a nervous breakdown and spent four days in the hospital. The mother went to North Carolina and picked up her son and brought him back to Maryland. Shortly thereafter, the father bought the son a corvette, which the mother fears gave the son a new temptation in life. Friends, girls, etc.

The son lost his job on the 21st of this month. The car insurance was due in nine days. That's the end of Officer Leverett's report. Keith's family spoke to his employer. Keith hadn't been fired. He voluntarily left because he had secured another job. It's unknown where Leverett got the information that Keith had been fired from. As he was leaving, Leverett handed Mary a business card from Collins Funeral Home and told her to contact them after 9am the next day.

Mary called her brother who lived in North Carolina. He immediately made the trip to Silver Spring and arrived at the funeral home about 1am. They denied him entry. He and Mary made two more attempts to get in and see Keith, however they continued to be denied access. A note in the police file from Detective Beasley states that he called the funeral home at 10am the next day, the 1st of August, when he was informed the body had been processed. Mary and Keith's uncle weren't allowed in to see Keith until later that afternoon, the 1st of August. The embalming of Keith's body had already been completed by then. Mary requested Keith's clothes, however the funeral home informed her they had destroyed the clothes he was wearing at the time of his death as Keith's body was severely decomposed and had deteriorated his clothes.

Keith's uncle then met with Officer Leverett. Leverett handed him a brown bag containing the 40 foot long rope, although the police kept the noose as evidence. He also gave him the empty wine coolers, a pair of brown boots that Leverett said Keith was wearing, his jacket and a backpack containing some of his favourite cassette tapes. Keith's shirt, pants and underwear were not handed over. The police confirming what the funeral home had said, they had to be thrown out due to being destroyed by severe decomposition. Dr John Rogers, the county medical examiner, also completed a report about Keith's death. He listed the time of death as 2.05pm on the 30th of July, the day before Keith was found. The report says he was first notified by police communications at 2.10pm the 31st of July and Keith was pronounced dead by Officer Leverett at 3pm the 31st of July.

Cause of death, asphyxiation as a consequence of hanging. The body of his report states, and this is word for word, the deceased was depressed last year. This spring he graduated from high school. His sister stated she hadn't seen him for about one week. This afternoon he was found by a person walking through the woods hanging by the neck with a half-sized rope from a tree. Police and I were notified and responded. He had a lot of green blow flies around him but only a few small maggots in the mouth and probably had been dead since last PM. That was the full and complete report of the county medical examiner Dr John Rogers.

Keith's only sister, Sherry, was not contacted by Dr Rogers and did not speak to the police at the time as she was only a minor. Plus she was out of the state when Keith died. Sherry later inquired how Dr Rogers was able to write in his report that she said she hadn't seen Keith for about one week, when she in fact hadn't spoken to anyone. Sherry was told that this information came from an undocumented third party. Leverett had written in his report that Keith had been hospitalized the previous year and Dr Rogers touched on it very briefly in his report mentioning Keith was depressed last year. The incident they were referring to occurred in July 1985, one year prior to Keith's death. Keith was hospitalized at Duke University Medical Center. He had returned to North Carolina to visit his father. They became involved in an argument over issues relating to the family breakdown which left Keith extremely distraught, stressed and struggling to cope with the family issues.

So he was hospitalized for a few days. Nowhere in his hospital discharge papers does it mention the word depression or suicidal. The treating doctor wrote that he had treated Keith for adjustment disorder resulting from severe family discord involving his now divorced biological parents. Keith didn't leave a suicide note. He had never talked about suicide or made a previous attempt. His friends and family said he was happy in the time leading up to his death, that he loved life and was looking forward to college. Crime scene was not examined and no ward tops he was conducted. So it was this previous incident at the hospital. The fact Keith had just lost his job and a $2,000 car insurance payment was looming, which he couldn't pay. And the fact Keith's father was threatening to take his car off him, that police and the medical examiner used to justify their ruling of suicide.

The fact Keith lost his job is in dispute by his family. The police didn't receive this information until they had already ruled the death of suicide and sent Keith's body to the funeral home. Although in Officer Leverett's notes that Keith's family obtained from the police file years later, there is the following handwritten note made at the scene by Leverett. Beasley knew of mental problems from one year ago at scene. No mention as the source of info on mental background at scene. It's unknown how Detective Beasley knew this information or where he got it from, as Keith's family were told that neither Leverett nor Beasley had any prior interaction with Keith. This information didn't make Leverett's report. The police told Mary Cooey Keith's death was an open and shut case. He had hung himself. One month after Keith's death, his auntie and grandmother wished to be taken to the site of Keith's suicide in order to pray.

Rodney Kendall knew the site well. He had gone to school with Keith and you heard his name mentioned in Leverett's report earlier as making identification of Keith's body. He actually went to the site while Keith was still in the tree to make that ID. So he took Keith's auntie and grandmother to the site so they could pray. Only when they arrived, Rodney found that the tree was no longer there. Mary Cooey immediately contacted the police and spoke with Detective Beasley. He told her, we cut the tree down, we are holding it for evidence. Mary wanted to know why the tree had been cut down for evidence if the case was an open and shut suicide and was now closed. She wasn't given an answer other than it was evidence. Detective Beasley confirmed the case was closed and would not be reopened. He told Mary she needed to start worrying about raising the only child she had left. Mary always had a hard time believing Keith had killed himself. In the following years, she raised her concerns repeatedly to Montgomery County Police, in particular Detective Beasley.

They refused to reopen or to re-examine the case. Mary was told, if you had been a better mother, this wouldn't have happened. Another comment made about Mary was, she is an emotionally distraught mother who cannot come to terms with her son's death. Mary wasn't alone though. Dallas Lipp, the EMT who was one of the first on scene, said in his affidavit that he was convinced that it wasn't a suicide. The scene just didn't look right to him. Photos had been taken of the scene, but no one was allowed to see them as they were classified to the Montgomery County Police Photo Archives. Eventually, Mary reluctantly accepted Keith's death was a suicide and tried to move on as best she could. Six years later, on what would have been Keith's 25th birthday, the 9th of April 1992, Mary arrived home from work. There was a manila envelope addressed to her on the front porch. There was no return address. Mary opened the folder and was shocked to find five crime scene photos showing Keith hanging from the tree.

After getting over the initial trauma of seeing the pictures, Mary noticed several things that unsettled her. One, she didn't recognize any of the clothes Keith was wearing. She had never seen him wearing them before and she had never come across them while doing his washing. Two, Keith was not wearing the brown boots Officer Leverett had given to Keith's uncle at the station after his death. He was wearing white running shoes. Three, Mary had not spoken to Dallas Lip at this point and only had Leverett's account, but it looked like Keith had jumped off a log and his body weight completed his intent, as stated in Leverett's report. Mary was surprised to see Keith's feet touching the ground almost in a sitting position with the tree bent and the complicated rope set up. She formed the same view as Dallas Lip. It looked like he had been hoisted. When Mary went to the police with the photos, they were shocked to see them. They were supposed to be classified. They weren't the original photos, they were copies, but they couldn't explain how or why they were delivered to Mary's porch.

The Montgomery County police refused to reopen the investigation, again stating it was an open and shut case. However, the photos convinced Mary something wasn't right. She requested to see the tree taken from the scene that police took as evidence. She was told that wouldn't be possible. Several reasons have been given over the years. One was that the tree was destroyed in a fire. The other was that it had been lost. However, Detective Beasley denies the tree was even cut down. He told the Washington Post years later, quote, I cut down the notch on the tree where the rope had been thrown over. I kept it for two years and disposed of it. Rodney Kendall and Keith's family are adamant the entire tree was cut down within one month of Keith's death. We can't tell today it's a completely different site. Houses have been built up where the trees once were. The photos weren't the only thing delivered to Mary that day. There was also a note to go with them.

The note said that Mark Findley and Lauren Berman would be next. Mary recognized these names. They were friends of Keith. Mark Findley found out about the threatening note. He contacted Mary and left a message on her answering machine. He said, I will be by to see you. I need to unload. Rumors were circulating that Mark had allegedly been bragging that he had put Keith's body up on the tree. Mark never did get round to see Mary, and four months after the photos and note appeared on Mary's porch, Mark Findley was dead. Killed him what was called a freak bike accident. His bicycle hit the curb and he fell off and died. It occurred in the early hours of the morning. No one else involved, no one at fault, no witnesses. Perry White, a paramedic called to the scene of Mark's accident, is of the opinion that the injuries suffered by Mark and the damage to his bike were much too great for him to have simply fallen off.

Plus there were no rash burns on his hands, common from people who fall off a bike as they try to break their fall. Perry was of the opinion that Mark had been hit by a car. But the death was officially ruled a freak accident and no autopsy was performed by order of the state's chief medical examiner's office, Baltimore, Maryland. After receiving the photos in 1992, Mary continued to lobby the Montgomery County police, various elected officials, and even the FBI to reopen the investigation into Keith's death. Every time her requests were denied, the FBI referred her back to the county police as there were no violations of federal law. Local media took a renewed interest in the case and it was even featured on the television show Unsolved Mysteries. But head of the Montgomery County Major Crimes Division, Lieutenant Thiemann, said to the media, We have seen nothing that indicates that death was anything other than a suicide. If Mrs. Cooey brings us some new evidence, we would gladly look at it.

He went on to say that Montgomery police had conducted three internal reviews of the case. Each review determined Keith's death to be a suicide. They found no evidence Keith had been hoisted and stated that Keith wouldn't have needed to jump off anything, as the manner in which someone can kill themselves by hanging is limitless. Mary Cooey responded, saying, After seeing the photos left on Mary's porch, Keith's father, Cleo, a police officer of 21 years at the time in Durham, North Carolina, offered a $5,000 reward for any information about Keith's death. The office of the state's chief medical examiner is in Baltimore and Dr. John Smileck was now performing the role, although he wasn't in the role at the time of Keith's death. He confirmed with the media that Maryland law gives the state medical examiner discretion in deciding when an autopsy should be performed. However, since he had taken over, he had decided that autopsies are now required in all cases of suicides involving teenagers and young adults. Regarding Keith's specific case, Dr. Smileck said,

A spokesman for Montgomery police said the department was conducting an internal review as to how the photos came to be placed on Mary's porch. He said it was a puzzle and a mystery, and admitted the photo lab had sloppy record keeping. Convinced something was seriously wrong with her son's case, Mary Cooley sought the assistance of a social group. They became interested in Keith's case and helped raise money to have Keith's body exhumed from his North Carolina grave. They hired an independent pathologist to conduct an autopsy. That independent pathologist was Dr. Isidore Mihalakis. The autopsy was conducted on the 26th of May 1994, eight years after Keith's death, at Lehigh Valley Hospital Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Dr. Mihalakis had been the medical examiner for Warren County, Pennsylvania for eight years at that point.

He would go on to remain in that role for another 17 years. He testified at a number of high profile cases, including that of serial killer Charles Cullen. He was known by his colleagues as extremely knowledgeable and very thorough. His findings were as follows, and this is taken directly from parts of his report. The autopsy findings on an anatomic basis showed a body hanging from a tree limb with feet touching the ground and the knees bent. There is nothing in the autopsy findings which will distinguish whether he was alive or dead when the hanging occurred. The clinical history is in contention between the investigators and the family. The scene investigation and the handling of the body immediately afterward was inappropriate and not in accordance with accepted standards of a good medical legal investigation system.

Subsequent toxicological findings after exhumation and complete autopsy of the body, as well as preliminary literature review, indicate the presence of substances which were not expected to be found in a body that has been buried, even taking into consideration the eight years that it was in turn. Such substances are not normal constituents of embalming fluids or decomposition or effect. The substance that most stands out is trichloroethane. Also found was dichloroethane, ethylbenzene, xylene, and toluene. Trichloroethane is commonly found in degreases, dry cleaning agents, glue, and to paint removers. Ethylbenzene, xylene, and toluene are often found together in gasoline.

The level of trichloroethane found in keeps blood and liver were at a fatal level. The level of dichloroethane was at a toxic level. Based on the levels noted, I do not believe he would have had the ability to hang himself, and for that matter, he would in all likelihood not even have the ability to make a decision about hanging himself. It is even possible that he may have been dead and subsequently hung by others to make it look like a suicide. He may also have been near death, unconscious, and hung by others. If he did it to himself, then I would think that the utensils used in terms of canisters, rags, etc. would have been noted by the investigators when they arrived at the scene.

By this scenario, one would presuppose that he put the noose about his neck in the manner in which he was found, and then used the suspect's substances until he passed out, at which point the hanging would cause his death. Under the circumstances in a good medical legal investigation system, a case such as Keith Warren's must be considered and investigated as a homicide until proven otherwise. The funeral director handling the case was queried by representatives of the family and denies having infused the body with anything other than embalming fluid. The substances recovered from Keith are found in various solvents, paints, lacquers, thinners, and similar substances. The possibility of groundwater contamination was entertained by this pathologist.

However, so far as we know, there is no such contamination of the cemetery. The vault and casket were sealed, and personally, I do not believe that the distribution levels would have been as found on Keith. Unfortunately, the casket broke in the process of the exhumation, and Keith was placed in a new casket and transported to Allentown. Neck. There are no fractures or dislocations or hemorrhages. The tongue, larynx, laryngeal cartilages, hyoid bone, and soft tissues of the neck, as well as the cervical vertebral column, visually are without note. There are no undue hemorrhages.

In the region of the ligature groove, no hemorrhages are noted about the neck. Cause of death is undetermined. In spite of decedent found hanging from tree limb with feet touching the ground and knees bent, it is undetermined because toxicological findings are incompatible with the autopsy findings, and in fact, do not support a hanging diagnosis. We will leave the autopsy report there. So the substances found in Keith's body bothered Dr. Mihalakis. Further investigation was conducted by him to ascertain if those chemicals could have come from the embalming fluids.

Dr. Mason, the toxicologist, informed Dr. Mihalakis these chemicals were highly unlikely to be found in embalming fluid. He had never encountered them before from embalming fluids during his career. As a preliminary check, three embalming chemical companies were canvassed. Allentown Chemical Company, Dodge Chemical Company, and Gold Bond Company. Each said no, those chemicals found in Keith don't form part of embalming fluid, and even if they did, it would be very remote they would get into the blood and live up. Keith was embalmed at Collins Funeral Home. Inquiries with them revealed that in 1986 they were using embalming fluids produced by Pierce Royal Bond Company and Dodge Chemical Company.

Both companies provided affidavits declaring their embalming fluids do not contain any of the substances found in Keith's body. Dr. Mason also confirmed that higher levels of trichloroethane were found in Keith's brain, at levels three times higher than found in his liver and blood. As the trichloroethane was widely distributed through Keith's body, his brain, liver and blood, Dr. Mason is of the belief the chemicals were in his body before Keith's death. A quote from Dr. Mihalakis. The presence of these substances, they have no business being there. They are not products of decomposition and are thoroughly distributed throughout the body.

The possibility exists that this young man was incapable of hanging himself. You need to put the district attorney on notice of these things. After the results of the autopsy were released, Mary Cooey told the Montgomery Journal. I always wondered how he got on the tree and why he was wearing someone else's clothes. I would hope that this case would be looked at again. But Montgomery County Police Chief Clarence Edwards said a new investigation would not be granted. However, he did say he would pass the full autopsy report onto the Major Crimes Division for review. A spokeswoman for the department told the Morning Call newspaper

that a copy of the autopsy report would also be sent to the State Medical Examiner's Office for review. Dr. Smilek. And if he felt there was some discrepancy between the autopsy and the outcome of the police investigation, then the case would be reopened. Dr. Smilek did review the autopsy report at the State Medical Examiner's Office in Baltimore. In January 1995, he released his findings. Keith Warren committed suicide. Contradicting the findings of Dr. Mihalakis,

Dr. Smilek ruled that the chemicals were injected into Keith's body after his death. He said in his report, quote, It is my opinion that the toxicological findings are consistent with the effects of the embalming and body preparation process. The absence of any physical injury on the body supports the conclusion that Keith Warren's hanging was a self-inflicted act. Dr. Smilek specifically mentioned Sanvino, a solvent that is applied to the skin to decontaminate bodies as being the source of the chemicals. Although Mary Cooey said a representative from Sanvino told her that their product does not and never has contained the chemicals found in Keith's body.

Mary didn't believe Keith's death was necessarily a homicide. She accepted it was possible he could have accidentally overdosed with other teens who then panicked and staged a suicide to avoid any trouble with the law. Mary hired an attorney to file a civil action lawsuit against Montgomery County, citing police negligence and violations of both hers and Keith's civil rights. Unfortunately, the attorney she hired filed the suit three months after the statute of limitations on civil rights violations had passed, so the lawsuit was dismissed. In 1999, Mary petitioned the Montgomery County state's attorney, Douglas Gansler, to look into the case.

After spending two years going over the case documents and tracking down old witnesses, Gansler agreed to reopen the case, albeit it was left as inactive. So it wasn't being looked at, but if further information came to light, then it would be investigated. Gansler said, It seemed to me there were a lot of open ends, loose ends, regarding the investigation. Clearly circumstances surrounding Keith's death had not been fully investigated. We still don't know definitively what happened on that day. In February 2003, Gansler sent a letter in response to a request for an update on Keith's case.

I'll read from that letter now. In coordination with the sheriff's office for Montgomery County, Maryland, a very thorough investigation was conducted. It remains unsolved precisely how Keith Warren died on July 31, 1986. As we previously discussed, many witnesses were put before the grand jury in regards to Mr. Warren's death. Given the confidential nature of grand jury proceedings, we are not able to share specific details with you. However, I want to reassure you that the case remains open, albeit in an inactive status, and if any new leads materialize, we will pursue them. Signed Douglas Gansler, Montgomery County State's Attorney.

The grand jury was news to Keith's family. They weren't aware there had been one, never notified. They weren't called to attend or give evidence of the grand jury. As the letter says, the proceedings of a grand jury are confidential, so we have no idea who was called and what evidence was given. In a media interview, Gansler said, We re-opened the case, we used the grand jury, we examined all the leads, we talked to all possible witnesses, and came to a conclusion of inconclusiveness. There are very strong arguments having looked at everything in this case that Keith Warren died of suicide.

But there are equally strong arguments to suggest that he did not die of suicide, that he was killed or died accidentally, and then was put on the tree afterwards. Then he was asked if it was his opinion that police botched the case. He replied, Under today's guidelines and procedures, this would have been botched. Still, the Montgomery County police maintained they were happy with their investigation and their determination that Keith's death was a suicide. Keith's family requested that the cause of Keith's death on his certificate at least be changed to undetermined.

However, the state medical examiner's office refused. Dr. Smilek was no longer the state's chief medical examiner. He died of a heart attack in 2001. Keith's family continued their fight. In February 2012, Dr. Mohamed Ali Al-Bayati, a toxicologist and pathologist, conducted an investigation into Keith Warren's death. He has over 25 years experience in both fields and has served as an expert witness in many medical legal cases. He has published over 50 articles in medical and scientific journals.

After completing a thorough investigation of all of the evidence, he wrote in his report the following. Keith had a lethal level of trichloroethane and a toxic level of dichloroethane in his blood, brain, liver, kidney and muscles. The concentrations and the pattern of the chemical distribution in tissues indicate Keith received these chemicals about one to two hours prior to his death via ingestion. And they were likely mixed with alcoholic drinks. The ingestion of high doses of these chemicals led to vomiting, diarrhea, central nervous system depression and aspiration pneumonia. Anti-wine cooler bottles were found in the densely wooded area where Keith was found hanging from a tree.

Alcohol increases the absorption of trichloroethane and dichloroethane from the gastrointestinal tract, which explains the presence of high concentrations of these chemicals in Keith's tissues. Both chemicals are very soluble in alcohol. Autopsy studies of suicide-hanging cases have shown injuries to the neck soft tissues, bones and organs in the majority of cases and bleeding in the soft tissues of the neck in all cases. The autopsy showed no hemorrhages, soft tissue injury, dislocation or fractures in Keith's neck. The lack of bleeding and injury in Keith's neck can be explained by the following medical evidence. Keith died as a result of ingesting a lethal dose of chemicals.

Keith's body was lifted and put in a hanging position a few hours after his death, when the muscles of the neck became stiff due to rigor mortis. In 1992, Keith's mother received five crime scene photos showing Keith was hanging from a tree. She noticed that Keith was not wearing his own clothing, which indicates that key information from the investigation was missed. It is likely that Keith's body was washed after death and his clothes were changed because they became dirty with vomit and possibly with fecal materials due to the lethal doses of chemicals mixed with alcohol that Keith ingested. Embarming Keith's body also interfered with the collection of important medical evidence. The police and the county medical examiner missed the cause of death in Keith's case

because they did not conduct the required standard medical legal investigation in his case. We will end the doctor's report there. Despite these findings, nothing has changed. The state medical examiner's office still refused to change the cause of death on Keith's certificate. Montgomery County police are still happy with their investigation and determination of suicide and will not reinvestigate. Officer Levret retired from the Montgomery County police in March 2000 after pleading guilty to assaulting his girlfriend. Second degree assault. Beat her, choked her and banged her head against the wall during an argument, as reported by the Washington Post.

He was subsequently charged with violating a protective order. He was immediately suspended by Montgomery County police before retiring. Chip Winn is dead from a drug overdose. He was the boyfriend of Claudia Lawson who made the 911 call. Chip lived in the house Keith was found behind. Claudia Lawson and the second male present in the house that day are still alive. Lawrence Berman, the other male named along with Mark Finley in the note delivered with Keith's crime scene photos to Mary, is still alive. The noose was never given to Keith's family.

Montgomery police actually admit it has been lost, possibly thrown out. Mary Cooley passed away in 2009. Currently, Mary's daughter Sherry Warren is still trying to have the cause of death changed on Keith's death certificate. She'll be happy to be met halfway and have the cause of death changed to undetermined. you