I should add that Lyle was very thin. If he lost weight, it was over a period of time. The skin was not loose or sagging. It's possible he lost the weight due to depression. The pathologist found nothing medically wrong with him. 09-28-2006
I'm sure glad I kept a copy of the case file. It has been awhile, and I was getting some of the facts twisted. I'll give you a timeline, and answer some of your questions. Lyle arrived at the motel on Friday, 9-14 aobut 4:30 PM. Two busses arrived at the location about the same time, and neither driver was sure if he was on board their bus. Lyle paid for one nights stay. The manager described him as polite, but didn't want to talk much. She thought he looked alittle spaced. He might have had a backpack, but the manager wasn't sure. He checked into unit#8 and took a shower. He complained that it was too noisy outside, so he was moved to unit#5. Sat. 9-15 the maid came to the door. He said that he was going to stay alittle longer, didn't need the room cleaned, but could use clean towels. Later in the day, the manager saw him pacing up and down the highway. She thought he was getting some exercise. On Sun 9-16 Lyle purchases the Sunday edition of the Daily World. The maid came by, and he sent her away. On Monday 9-17 in the morning the maid knocked on the door, but received no response. She entered the room and found him praying. He didn't talk to her, and she left. She later told the manager, who entered the room after noon and found that Lyle had hung himself. (for some reason I had recalled that he had been dead longer than that). When I arrived sometime later, rigor mortis was setting in. As for the questions: there was no alcohol or drugs in his system. The coat rack wasn't in an enclosed closet, but rather a small alcove in one corner of the living room. I never closely examined the belt, I'm making arrangements to do that. It is a leather belt with a silver colored buckly and a silver colored belt tip. It has a western look to it. I don't recall seeing any stationary in the room. 09-28-2006
His appendix scar was old 09-27-2006
No chest hair, some hair on legs and arms. Sparse hair on his chin. 09-27-2006
As for the question posed by Scandi concerning the ridge on Lyles forehead that is not visible in the profile shot, I took the profile picture at the beginning of the autopsy. I took the face-on shot at the conclusion, after the skull had been opened. I pulled the scalp back into place in order to take that shot, and didn't see the wrinke of skin on his forehead. His forehead was smooth. 09-27-2006
There was no place to eat at the motel, but there are places nearby. I don't recall anything being in his stomach at the autopsy. There was no wrappers from anything he might have purchased in his trash can. He took whatever change he had in his pocket, and put it in a desk drawer. After he wrote the note "for the room" he put the cap on the pen, and put the pen in his right front pants pocket. Habits. You're not even aware you're doing them 09-27-2006
I could find no callouses on his hands, or scrapes or scars. Fingernails weren't chipped or broken, and no indications of a manicure. No tan lines either. During the time he spent there, he purchased a copy of the local newspaper, and probably some food (although no one recalled seeing him). I located some change in the drawer of the desk in the room. He had paid for one night, but when the maid came by the next day, he told the maid that he was staying a few more days. I think he was finishing up some loose ends, writing a letter, etc. I think he had been dead about 24 hours when we found him 9-27-2006
There are many questions I have for her.
