The family of a Southern California attorney who died mysteriously while on vacation in Mexico last week took issue with conflicting explanations given by Mexican authorities, and a medical expert told Fox News Digital that there are several troubling inconsistencies with the government’s version of events.
Orange County Deputy Public Defender Elliot Blair, 33, was celebrating his first wedding anniversary at Las Rocas Resort and Spa in Rosarito Beach with his wife, Kim, when he died. Authorities have said the death was an accidental fall that the family disputes saying the tragic incident occurred in an “outdoor hallway” and that they believe he was the victim of a “brutal crime.”
“There are several inconsistencies in the preliminary reports that immediately suggest there is more to it than meets the eye,” injury and body performance expert Dr. Rami Hashish told Fox News Digital on Friday.
Hashish cited reports that Blair suffered a forehead injury not consistent with a fall, saying that raises two important questions that remain unanswered.
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Orange County Deputy Public Defender Elliot Blair was “tragically murdered” while on vacation in Rosarito, Mexico, on January 14, his family says.
(GoFundMe)
“Considering his height, the height of the balcony, and the fact that he was reportedly not intoxicated, how did his body fall vertically over the edge of the balcony? If, in fact, he fell independently, why didn’t he contort his body to limit the impact to his head, and maximize his chances of survival?”
Earlier this week, the Orange County Record reported that Mexican authorities suggested Blair fell from the balcony while trying to chase pigeons off the ledge the family disputed and Dr Hashish said seems unlikely given the circumstances.
“It’s very unlikely that someone would lose their balance when they’re just shooing away the pigeons,” Hashish said. “But what’s even more unlikely is someone losing their balance and then falling over the edge of a balcony.”
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Orange County Deputy Public Defender Elliot Blair was vacationing in Mexico with his wife for their first wedding anniversary when he died.
(GoFundMe)
“Falling off a balcony,” Hashish explained. “Mr. Blair’s center of gravity needed to clear the highest edge of the balcony. As humans, our center of gravity is about an inch below our belly button. And of course, when we lose our balance, such as during a slip or trip we fall down.
“So how exactly did Mr. Blair lose his balance, but his belly button was still above the edge of the balcony? And how did he lose his balance in such an aggressive manner that he was unable to react to prevent himself from falling?” – for example, by holding on to part of the balcony?”
Blair’s family says they found him in his underwear, a nightshirt and socks, and that he was not intoxicated.
Blair’s wife, Kimberly Williams, returned with Blair to the hotel room around midnight after dinner. Williams is said to have fallen asleep while Blair was showering and was woken by hotel employees at 1:40 a.m. and questioned about Blair, at which point her body was discovered under the balcony, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The family also said they are unable to do their own toxicology investigation because Blair’s body was embalmed against his wishes following an order by prosecutors. A Mexican official denied that anything was done to the body against the wishes of the family.
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Hashish, the founder of the National Institute of Biomechanics, told Fox News Digital that he consulted a lawyer for the family who also concluded that the Mexican officials’ story does not add up. Hashish noted that healthy men like Blair can usually survive falls from three stories.
“Healthy young adults, like Mr. Blair, can survive an independent three-story fall,” Hashish said. “However, if they are unconscious or if there is an external force, such as when they are thrown or pushed, then not only do they have less ability to react and protect their body in the event of an impact, but they also impact the ground with much greater force.” elderly”.
Conflicting information coming out of Mexico turned even murkier this week when Blair’s family said Mexican authorities claimed Blair had suffered a gunshot wound. The New York Post reported.
A Mexican official has since denied the existence of a gunshot wound, the Los Angeles Times reported, saying there were “no signs of violence.”
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California public defender Elliot Blair and his wife, Kim, smile in a photo on the GoFundMe page.
(GoFundMe)
“Preliminary evidence suggests that if Mr Blair was not intoxicated, then his fall from the balcony was probably not of an independent nature,” Hashish said. “Of course, given the evidence surrounding the case, this may suggest that there was something nefarious leading up to his downfall and ultimately his death. The recent revelations, in which Mrs Blair’s wife reported that her husband had been shot in the head, would certainly qualify as such.”
The US State Department confirmed to Fox News Digital that it is aware of Blair’s death in Baja California, Mexico and is ready to “provide all appropriate consular assistance” but has no further comment “out of respect to the family during this difficult time.
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Blair’s family says they will hire a private investigation firm and an independent forensic pathologist. They also said they would conduct their own toxicology analysis.
“Due to the inadequacy of the investigation, the family feels compelled to conduct its own private investigation in search of the truth,” the family said in a statement.
Hashish told Fox News Digital that in his experience testifying as an expert witness “countless times,” it’s not uncommon to see variations in stories due to “memory lapses” or “misunderstandings of the questions being asked,” but they can also be the result of “misrepresentation of the facts” and that “a cover-up is certainly a possibility.”
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As of Friday afternoon, more than $113,000 has been donated to a GoFundMe page intended to help his wife “with the cumbersome process involved in transporting Elliot’s body from Mexico to the US and dealing with all the red tape.” .
Michael Ruiz and Elizabeth Pritchett of Fox News contributed to this report.
