Coroner Agrees to Further Testing in CU Boulder Student Death Case

The Boulder County Coroner’s Office (BCCO) has agreed to conduct additional testing of the stomach contents of Megan Trussell, a CU Boulder student who was found dead on February 15. Trussell’s death was investigated by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) and the BCCO, and the offices announced on May 27 that the investigation had concluded and her death was ruled a suicide; she died as a result of toxic effects of amphetamine and exposure to a cold environment.

The decision to test the contents of Trussell’s stomach after the conclusion of the investigation comes after Trussell’s parents, Vanesssa Diaz and Joe Trussell, expressed dissatisfaction with the result of the investigation and the manner in which it was conducted.

The circumstances surrounding Megan’s disappearance, along with the condition and location of her body, make it hard to reconcile suicide as the cause of death,” Diaz and Trussell said in a joint statement. “Megan deserves a full, thorough investigation — one that addresses every red flag. So far, we have not seen that from the BCSO.”

The contents to be tested by the BCCO, according to Issue Wire, include “a softball-sized mass of gray granular material found during autopsy.” Issue Wire reported that a pathologist involved in the case noted that the mass was “larger than anything they had seen in 3,800 autopsies.”

Diaz and Joe Trussell have been working with a PR agency called Vigilante PR to contact media organizations in order to bring attention to the manner in which the initial investigation was conducted and to express their desire to uncover additional answers about their daughter’s death.

“We are actually working for them pro bono,” said Vigilante co-founder Andrea Holt. “I used to live and work in Boulder and like to give back to the community whenever possible. I am also a mother and can’t fathom what they are dealing with.”

Vigilante PR has contacted numerous media outlets describing how there is “glaring evidence pointing to homicide” within Trussell’s case, including things that were “ignored” by the BCSO, like Trussell being found missing a shoe; having sustained “significant physical Injuries inconsistent with suicide,” like severe head trauma and newly chipped teeth; her phone having been sold/pawned by an unhoused individual in the Boulder area; amongst other pieces of evidence.

Issue Wire said that Trussell’s family is also calling for additional testing by the BCSO, claiming “fingernail clippings, various swaps (including a rape kit and DNA swaps), blood found near Megan’s body, as well as a forensic analysis of the injury patterns spread across her body” were not adequately analyzed.