By Roger McKinney
rmckinney@joplinglobe.com
COLUMBUS, Kan. — No criminal charges will be filed in the death of 47-year-old Hazel Shockley, of Columbus, Cherokee County Attorney John Bullard said Wednesday in a news release.
The decision was based on Shockley’s final autopsy report. The news release was issued jointly by Bullard and Undersheriff Kent Soucy.
Shockley’s body was found March 16 in Weir in an area popular with riders of all-terrain vehicles. She had been missing since New Year’s Eve, when she was seen at a party in Weir.
Columbus police Chief Chuck Sharp said in January that Shockley was seen in the company of a male friend at the party and was thought to have left the party around midnight. The friend told investigators that he didn’t leave with Shockley. Sharp said in January that he thought criminal activity was involved in Shockley’s death. A person of interest reportedly was questioned.
The investigation later was turned over to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
According to Bullard, the autopsy revealed no injury or disease that would explain Shockley’s death and determined that “drug overdose is the best explanation of the cause of death.”
Bullard wrote that the precise cause of Shockley’s death was not determined with certainty by the autopsy.
Bullard said by phone that, out of respect for the family, he would not disclose the drug or drugs found in Shockley’s system, other than to say it was not prescription medication.
The autopsy report on Wednesday was not yet on file in the court clerk’s office and therefore was not a public record. Bullard declined to provide a copy of the report.
Family responds
Shockley’s daughter, Stephanie Shockley, said in January that her mother took high dosages of medicine for back pain. She said her mother was found unconscious in her home in December with a slow heart rate and low body temperature, and was hospitalized in Joplin, Mo. The daughter was not clear about what caused her mother’s illness.
Hazel Shockley’s younger brother, Steve Shockley, on Wednesday said he was upset by the decision.
“Nobody gets in any trouble for just leaving somebody?” he said. “That doesn’t seem fair. They could have tipped off police to where the body was. It could have saved a lot of heartache. Somebody had to know she died. Somebody left her there.
“The people who did this, I would rather think this was an accident and (they) didn’t mean to hurt her. I’m sure somebody just got scared, but they could have called somebody.”
Steve Shockley, of Joplin, said his sister had severe back pain, for which she took medication, but he was unaware of what she was taking.
Bullard said by phone that all evidence in the case was examined, and that there was no direct evidence that anyone abandoned Hazel Shockley after she had died.
“It would only be speculation,” Bullard said of the scenario.
Steve Shockley said a raft of rumors in Columbus and Cherokee County followed his sister’s disappearance. The news release tried to dispel one of them.
“There have been several rumors circulating regarding the potential for foul play and the condition of Ms. Shockley when she was located,” the news release read. “We will not offer details, but will unequivocally state that the rumors regarding Ms. Shockley being kept somewhere and then placed in the location where she was found at a later date have no basis in fact.”
Steve Shockley said that aspect remains troubling.
“That seems awful strange that they couldn’t find that body in three months, and it don’t take a detective to know that,” he said.
Missing car
Hazel Shockley’s car was found near Oswego, Kan., a few weeks after her disappearance. Investigators previously had not said where the car was found, but Cherokee County Attorney John Bullard confirmed the information Wednesday.
Local News
No charges to be filed in Columbus woman’s death
- Local News
-
-
City wants to buy weather radios for those without
Phil Jones had been working on a construction project outside his house all day on May 22 and was unaware that a tornado watch had been issued. Once he was inside, though, his weather radio went off, and he learned that a warning had been issued.
-
Architects present preliminary JHS plans at community meeting
Reaction appeared mostly supportive Thursday night among the roughly 50 people who attended a community meeting at which architects presented their preliminary site plans for the future combined Joplin High School and Franklin Technology Center.
-
Confessed shooter testifies against co-defendants in Pittsburg murder case
Rickey Smith testified Thursday that as he came in the back door of Ryan Bailey’s home in Pittsburg with a 9 mm pistol in his hand, Bailey looked up from the couch in his living room.
-
School district’s proposed street-closing plan questioned
Plans to close some streets near the proposed Joplin High School drew questions, including a challenge from a former Joplin mayor, during a public hearing this week.
-
Neosho council approves new golf cart contract
The purchase of golf carts was back on the agenda this week for the Neosho City Council. City Attorney Steve Hays said there were errors in the financing terms that were part of a bid approved last month for the purchase of 55 gas-powered carts from E-Z-Go for $144,195, so the purchase of a new fleet was rebid.
-
Mike Pound: Spirit of competition evident during double-overtime game
When I played basketball in high school, I played in several very close games.
Now, some people who may have known me in high school are probably laughing right now and saying, “What Mike meant to say is that when he was in high school, he came very close to playing in some games.” -
Mo. optometrist filed $40 million refund claim
A southwest Missouri optometrist who filed a tax return claiming a $40 million refund has been sentenced to four years and three months in federal prison.
-
Okla. receives waiver from No Child Left Behind
Oklahoma’s top education official reacted with glee Thursday with the announcement that the state is one of 10 states being granted a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind law that requires students be proficient in reading and math by 2014 — but focused on getting students to “just pass the tests.”
-
Kan. House approves bipartisan redistricting bill
Power in the Kansas House is likely to shift next year from rural parts of the state to the Kansas City area after members overwhelmingly approved a bipartisan bill Thursday for redrawing their districts.
-
Fugitive in 1993 British heist arrested in Ozark
A man suspected of stealing about $1.5 million from a security van in England in 1993 has been arrested in southwest Missouri.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
Ga Girl Fights Off Kidnapper at Walmart
Nevada Highway Patrol, City Settle Beating Case
Homs Bombardment Continues, Global Outcry Grows
Raw Video: Dog Rescued From Icy Colo. Water
Skip the Coffee Cup and Inhale Your Caffeine Fix
