Some 14 months after the mysterious death of an Army veteran, his family is still fighting for answers that include why the man’s brain, heart and throat were missing when his body was returned for burial.
In their quest for closure, the family of Everett Palmer hired civil rights attorney Lee Merritt to demand answers in the death of Palmer, who ended up dead after driving to Lancaster County, Pa., from New York to settle an old DUI warrant.
While Palmer’s mother believes he was murdered, York County, Pa., officials insist that his missing organs don’t point to foul play.
“At no time were the remains ‘missing,’” York County Coroner Pamela Gay said in a statement. “We did advise the family through their attorney at the time that the organs referenced, the heart, brain and throat, had been retained by [Forensic Pathology Associates] for further investigation.”
Gay said Palmer died after he had become agitated and banged his head repeatedly against a cell door in the York County Prison.
“After 14 months, there has been no explanation to what happened to Everett Palmer,” Merritt told reporters. “The information that we’ve been receiving, in a very piecemeal style, tells us that Everett Palmer was tased, restrained, and outside factors; [and] other persons were involved in causing his death.”
