Found Deceased TN - Riley Strain, 22, missing after leaving bar, Nashville, 8 March 2024 #4

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PommyMommy said:

New video details the night 22-year-old Riley Strain went missing​


:57 Riley follows a friend through the bar to what appears to be their table. They sit for awhile and then Riley follows a friend up to the bar. It is about at this time security sends out the alert that Riley was verbally aggressive with staff.

1:20 Not long after that, an employee points Riley out to a security guard, who then goes to talk to him. After a few minutes of conversation, you see Riley's friend trying to get him to go back to the table, but he stays.

1:35 After more talking, the security guard then moves to lead Riley out of the bar. The friend in the backwards baseball hat turns to go tell the others, and that brings us to the video of the stairway...

1:53 "By the time Strain's fraternity brothers made it down to try to find him, he was gone."
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Thank you for that summary.

I wonder how this fits in with the family spokesman's early reports that Riley was actually trying to be helpful. Maybe it was as simple as him telling the bartender she made a drink incorrectly or that it wasn't cold enough, or some sort of "suggestion" that rubbed her the wrong way:

"Additionally, Dingman disclosed that Strain’s removal from the bar was not due to confrontations but rather a conversation with an employee.

“There was no argument … Riley was actually trying to do a good deed,” Dingman said. “They felt like, you know, maybe he had had enough.”"

 
JerseyWasHome2 said:
Thank you for that summary.

I wonder how this fits in with the family spokesman's early reports that Riley was actually trying to be helpful. Maybe it was as simple as him telling the bartender she made a drink incorrectly or that it wasn't cold enough, or some sort of "suggestion" that rubbed her the wrong way:

"Additionally, Dingman disclosed that Strain’s removal from the bar was not due to confrontations but rather a conversation with an employee.

“There was no argument … Riley was actually trying to do a good deed,” Dingman said. “They felt like, you know, maybe he had had enough.”"

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I think the family spokesperson existed to paint Riley in the best light, even if that involved massaging the truth.
 
JerseyWasHome2 said:
Thank you for that summary.

I wonder how this fits in with the family spokesman's early reports that Riley was actually trying to be helpful. Maybe it was as simple as him telling the bartender she made a drink incorrectly or that it wasn't cold enough, or some sort of "suggestion" that rubbed her the wrong way:

"Additionally, Dingman disclosed that Strain’s removal from the bar was not due to confrontations but rather a conversation with an employee.

“There was no argument … Riley was actually trying to do a good deed,” Dingman said. “They felt like, you know, maybe he had had enough.”"

Click to expand...
Even persistence, how ever well-intentioned, can be aggressive. "Trying to help" can be helpful... or pushy. Probably, more than anything, it called attention to him. Tragic how it ended but entirely unforeseeable. He wasn't falling-down drunk, so good on the bar for policing the place.

As for his friends, it was essentially a pub crawl, within walking distance of the hotel. No risk of drunk driving, no need for a designated driver. That's fairly responsible....

Should someone have walked Riley back to the hotel? Well, sure. We especially know that NOW, but then? His friends were also drinking, at varying degrees of buzzed themselves. Critical thinking hampered all around.

Understandable that Riley got turned around. Could he, would he have made it back to the hotel then? But woulda, coulda, shoulda. Officer could have given him directions, a rode, a citation. But no one, least of all Riley, knew he was headed to death. Series of unfortunate events.

Why was he running? Nature calls. Ultimately I think that's what cost him his life in the end, off the path, lost his balance.

It is a cautionary tale, but America's favorite pass-time will probably always have pull.

I feel for Riley's family, friends and even fraternity brothers -- because the loss never goes away.

JMO
 
JerseyWasHome2 said:
Thank you for that summary.

I wonder how this fits in with the family spokesman's early reports that Riley was actually trying to be helpful. Maybe it was as simple as him telling the bartender she made a drink incorrectly or that it wasn't cold enough, or some sort of "suggestion" that rubbed her the wrong way:

"Additionally, Dingman disclosed that Strain’s removal from the bar was not due to confrontations but rather a conversation with an employee.

“There was no argument … Riley was actually trying to do a good deed,” Dingman said. “They felt like, you know, maybe he had had enough.”"

Click to expand...

I don't understand the secrecy around this incident.
 
LadyL said:
I don't understand the secrecy around this incident.
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MOO - I think that whatever the argument was would paint Riley and/or the frat in a way that would have dissuaded the public from trying to help. Parallels can be drawn to the ongoing Caleb Harris investigation where the family and police chose to leave out details initially.
 
Leopard said:
MOO - I think that whatever the argument was would paint Riley and/or the frat in a way that would have dissuaded the public from trying to help. Parallels can be drawn to the ongoing Caleb Harris investigation where the family and police chose to leave out details initially.
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I'll look the case up ty.
 
fsngruv said:
What secrecy? Imo, I feel they have been fairly forthcoming. Not it to suggest they haven't been more forthcoming. Would you care to elaborate on your feeling of secrecy?
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who has been forthcoming about it?

we still don't know what was said or to who or why his family said they thought he was actually trying to be helpful when the bar said he was being aggressive
 
LadyL said:
who has been forthcoming about it?

we still don't know what was said or to who or why his family said they thought he was actually trying to be helpful when the bar said he was being aggressive
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Okay, I understand you. I don't think what he said really matters or has anything to do with what happened to him, but I understand your statement. Thanks for the clarity.
 
From KMIZ ABC 17 News. Extended video of Riley. He seems to be at that bar a lot. For being served two drinks and two waters. Surely they don’t charge for water? Curious why in a few scenes he had to sign some sort of long paper bill and in others they just swiped his card.

He also seems to always place his card in his wallet carefully, and then place his wallet in his front pants pocket.

As one comment says, how did his card wind up on the river bank then, and not his entire wallet? Unless, of course, he used the card later that we have not seen and perhaps placed it elsewhere, like in his shirt pocket.

Any idea what that busy scene is where he walks into what looks like a lobby with several doors, camera is overhead so it’s an aerial view, very busy, tons of people, and he gets snagged by someone so he leaves, finishes a drink and tosses it in a trash can near the door, then re-enters.

 
JerseyWasHome2 said:
From KMIZ ABC 17 News. Extended video of Riley. He seems to be at that bar a lot. For being served two drinks and two waters. Surely they don’t charge for water? Curious why in a few scenes he had to sign some sort of long paper bill and in others they just swiped his card.

He also seems to always place his card in his wallet carefully, and then place his wallet in his front pants pocket.

As one comment says, how did his card wind up on the river bank then, and not his entire wallet? Unless, of course, he used the card later that we have not seen and perhaps placed it elsewhere, like in his shirt pocket.

Any idea what that busy scene is where he walks into what looks like a lobby with several doors, camera is overhead so it’s an aerial view, very busy, tons of people, and he gets snagged by someone so he leaves, finishes a drink and tosses it in a trash can near the door, then re-enters.

Click to expand...
I'm not a bar-hopper these days but at other kinds of establishments like restaurants, hair salons, & even at my dentist's cards are run & a receipt is still signed. So I'm not sure why his card was just swiped the first time (think the bartender initially carded him for age.) But it wouldn't surprise me to see a charge for water. I think lots of places charge.
MOO
 
NCWatcher said:
I'm not a bar-hopper these days but at other kinds of establishments like restaurants, hair salons, & even at my dentist's cards are run & a receipt is still signed.
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I still bar hop- well, at more smaller and more subdued bars.

Anyways, bars will often require customers to start a tab that is secured by a credit card. This is to prevent the bar from being victimized by "drink and dashers". The bar employee swipes the credit card to start the tab.

When you "tab out", you can ask for the printed receipt to either make sure the charge is accurate and /or to add a customized tip.

Or... you can just walk out and the bar will charge the credit card used to secure the tab and also add the more generous 20-25% tip rate.

<modsnip - not victim friendly>
 
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Cryptic said:
I still bar hop- well, at more smaller and more subdued bars.

Anyways, bars will often require customers to start a tab that is secured by a credit card. This is to prevent the bar from being victimized by "drink and dashers". The bar employee swipes the credit card to start the tab.

When you "tab out", you can ask for the printed receipt to either make sure the charge is accurate and /or to add a customized tip.

Or... you can just walk out and the bar will charge the credit card used to secure the tab and also add the more generous 20-25% tip rate.

<modsnip - not victim friendly>
Click to expand...
Makes sense. Thanks for the additional info. Does that mean when RS was signing the "long piece of paper" in the video he was tabbing out? Seems a little odd he'd order two waters and close his tab then. From what we've been told, he hadn't been asked to leave yet.
MOO
 
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NCWatcher said:
Does that mean when RS was signing the "long piece of paper" in the video he was tabbing out? Seems a little odd he'd order two waters and close his tab then.
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Yes, it would appear that he was tabbing out.

I agree, tabbing out after ordering two waters is odd. But then again, bar staff from Algeria to Zimbabwe can probably all testify that humans doing seemingly odd things in bars is really not that odd.

As a side note, if one tabs out early, and then wants more drinks or food, the staff needs to re-swipe the card again to start a new tab. Small bars may trust the customer is not a "drink and dasher" and not do the second swipe. But large tourist bars will near always restart a new tab via a new swipe.

If the second swipe did not occur after he seemingly closed out for the waters, it could well suggest that somebody else bought Riley's two alcoholic drinks via placing them on their tab.
 
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Cryptic said:
Yes, it would appear that he was tabbing out.

I agree, tabbing out after ordering two waters is odd. But then again, bar staff from Algeria to Zimbabwe can probably all testify that humans doing seemingly odd things in bars is really not that odd.

As a side note, if one tabs out early, and then wants more drinks or food, the staff needs to re-swipe the card again to start a new tab. Small bars may trust the customer is not a "drink and dasher" and not do the second swipe. But large tourist bars will near always restart a new tab via a new swipe.

If the second swipe did not occur after he seemingly closed out for the waters, it could well suggest that somebody else bought Riley's two alcoholic drinks via placing them on their tab.
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Yes, I agree people do odd things! But tabbing out with the two water suggests RS may have already decided to leave before he was asked to. Also, I don't think there is any evidence RS drank two alcoholic drinks after he ordered waters is there? Luke's said he ordered 1 alcoholic drink and 2 waters. That matches the video. I realize other drinks could be hidden on someone else's tab but I don't think that works timewise, does it?
MOO
 
LadyL said:
yep that's the first time we've heard that they were drinking on a bus and who knows if they also drank in the hotel room ...
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True but given the timeline if accurate-- arrived in Nashville 4:30 & photographed drinking in a bar in downtown Nashville at 4:55-- there wouldn't have been much time for hotel drinking.

It looks like to come up with the drink count investigators have gone by time passed, male sex, body size, and BAL. I don't doubt RS drank a fair amount, but to come up with the number of drinks one has to assume the BAL was accurate after 2 weeks on the water. I'm not sure that's a valid assumption.
MOO
 
NCWatcher said:
It looks like to come up with the drink count investigators have gone by time passed, male sex, body size, and BAL. I don't doubt RS drank a fair amount, but to come up with the number of drinks one has to assume the BAL was accurate after 2 weeks on the water. I'm not sure that's a valid assumption.
MOO
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I think also with the bus-drink number provided by the fraternity brothers, plus video and receipts, they have a pretty accurate number. 5 on the bus, a margarita at the first bar, I forget, but it's noted somewhere what drinks he had at Miranda Lambert's, Garth Brooks's, and Kid Rock's bars, then 1 at Luke Bryan's. The number isn't outlandish, IMO.
 
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