[4Zoltan]

Except in this case the medical examiner did not come out and say there were three causes of death. A Coast Guard officer who never examined the body said one thing. A police officer reported something else and the medical examiner gave the final answer.

[butterdezillion]

It wasn’t “a police officer” who said the autopsy’s preliminary cause of death, pendinq final tox results, was drowninq. It was THE DEPUTY CORONER, the one in charqe. The person who siqned the Inquest. The one who made the final determination of cause of death.

And how did Dr. Harle conduct an autopsy from Maui, when the body was alleqedly at the Molokai Hospital morque?

Why did the commander of the Hercules - the one doinq communications for the whole rescue operation - say durinq his debriefinq that Fuddy had suffered massive internal injuries?

[ethical]

The USCG commander reported the first cause of death. We can not say that the determination Fuddy died from “severe internal injuries” was not made by an on scene medic. We don't know. I don't think search and rescue people are trained to repeat unsubstantiated causes of death. The next cause of death was drowning reported by a Maui detective, deputy coroner, who was officially detailing the results of the autopsy and what the medical examiner's conclusion. The third cause of death was made sometime later that day, the article does not say what time it was changed from drowning to cardiac arrhythmia.