Thread. Jeffrey Epstein photos are out and here’s my take: cbsnews.com/news/jeffrey-e… 1
Disclaimer: I wasn’t consulted by the press & don’t have access to all the photos, just the ones in the news reports. The quality is not as good as if I had originals digital files. 2
That said, in the photos shown the ligature furrow appears horizontal and does not appear to elevate behind the ears. There is also injury to the right back base of the neck. This is concerning for a strangulation rather than a hanging. 3
Pieces of orange sheet are noted in the window and on the bunk bed in various locations. Where he was secured and his body position at the time he was found is unclear. 4
Those details may be in the Medical Examiner’s death scene investigation or the interviews with the guards. Those documents have not been made available. 5
It is not unusual for documents used in a criminal prosecution or ongoing investigation to be held and become public record later at trial & there is an ongoing investigation into the guards with pending criminal litigation against them for falsifying records 6
The *most important* documents that would help distinguish a homicide from a suicide are the videos of the hall & the electronic records of the jail doors. They would tell us if he was really alone or if someone else could have had access to him in the time interval 7
Summary: horizontally oriented ligature mark with injury to the back of the neck is concerning, but not definitive. In the absence of reliable records indicating he was alive and alone when this happened, it would have been prudent to make manner Undetermined not Suicide. End
For my early impression of the case prior to the release of these scene & autopsy photos see OpEd in @medpagetoday here: medpagetoday.com/blogs/working-…
