Amateur CSI time ...
Last Friday, I went to check on a friend who was not answering the phone. I knew in my gut something was wrong and this person has been hit by car 2 weeks prior so we were watching him closely. He had a catscan and MRI the night of the accident which showed no fracture of the skull so they cleaned the head and put 4 staples in to close a gash in the rear crown area of the head. They also found that he had a resting heart rate of 128 bpm. Heart rate was still high when he had the staples removed by a clinic on the day prior to his crossing over. 44YO male, smoker of 1/2 pack per day, some weed, heavy drinker for 22 years, normal weight, former lifeguard and athlete before the boozing started. He had top secret clearance while in the Navy but was discharged honorably when they discovered him sleep walking on deck one night.
He had complained of feeling tired earlier in the day when I visited around 10AM. He worked 4 hours for a client who also reported that he been told and could see that this person was tired and "not 100%" I had talked to him for 6 mins on Thursday around 730PM and he sounded slow but insisted he was "okay" twice. I called again around 930PM Thursday with concern. No answer, no call back. Same for Friday. I went at 530PM to his first floor apartment and noticed the bay window had been broken from the inside. My adrenaline surged. I went to the back door, took a deep breath and looked in -- not good. My pass key wouldn't work so I removed the air conditioner which was not on and reached around to unlock the door from the inside -- both the deadbolt and knobs locks were set.
In the 1-bdroom apt my friend's body was on the floor in front of the TV stand. laying on his side between the stand and the coffee table. Laying the way you would if you were sleeping on your left side. The 50" flatscreen was on and was flipped down on top of him and broken, a decorative ladder that hung on the wall between the LR and BR was pulled down and now blocked the hallway leading to the bath and BR.
Touching his legs which were feverishly warm and greenish confirmed that he was gone and not in some state of extended unconsciousness. When I took the TV off of him, his face was blueish green but uninjured by the TV which had hit the arm of a chair on the way down perhaps (because it was broken in way that suggested impact with a corner). His arms and hands were in a kind of fetal position, fingers curled, elbows bent at about 90 degrees and stiff.
The front door was locked the same as the back -- knob and deadbolt, front room AC was also off and the apt was insufferably warm with no circulation save the broken window. There was no alcohol present aside from an unopened 24oz beer in the fridge, half slice of pizza in the microwave and there was a thick brown brown gel that smelled like tobacco in the kitchen sink, about 4 oz in total. By the back door where I entered was a small pool of dried blood about 6-inches in diameter but nearer the body and on the body itself, no blood, no signs of combat or struggle. No unusual odors, working smoke and carbon monoxide detector in the room. A 2 liter bottle of Coke lay half spilled on the floor near the body as if it had been knocked off the coffee table.
Upstairs neighborhood heard a sound "like someone had dropped and broken a drinking glass" sometime between 9PM and 11PM but no screams or anything else of note.
I have a theory but would like to hear from others. Feel free to ask any questions needed to make your assessment and thanks in advance for your input on this one.
= new reply since forum marked as read
probably a heart attack or stroke. The stuff broke as he was falling down. Not know the configuration of the room/window and broken items I would guess that the window may have been broken in an attempt to get someone's attention for help.
The jell substance in the sink that smelled like tobacco, was he using an e-cig? Could it possibly vomit? some people vomit when having a medical emergency.
Sorry to hear about your friend. 
I have been avoiding revisiting this question of cause. My own guess is heart attack or stroke. He loses balance, struggles to stay up or get up, not enough oxygen to the brain and it ends.
I've laid it coldly here but our community is heartbroken. He was generous with his heart and well liked.
and I'll accept that...
life is resilient and fragile at the same time. And life is truly not fair, except perhaps by accident.
to your friend
