Details continue to unfold in the case of a Georgia mother who reportedly fell to her death while attending an adult slumber party last year.
According to a toxicology report obtained by WSB-TV, Tamla Horsford had a blood alcohol level of .23 at the time of her death — nearly three times the legal limit to drive in Georgia. The screening also found traces of marijuana and the benzodiazepine Xanax in her system, the station reported.
Tamla Horsford’s family hired their own medical examiner and said the injuries she sustained aren’t consistent with what authorities claim. (Image courtesy of WSB-TV)
The new development comes one day after Forsyth County authorities closed the investigation into Horsford’s death after finding no evidence of foul play.
“No evidence or injury patterns indicative of an assault, or foul play were noted by the detectives or the Forsyth County Coroner’s Office or the GBI Medical Examiner’s report,” Mayor Joe Perkins said during a press conference Wednesday, noting detectives interviewed 30 people, including those at the party that night, as part of the investigation.
Not everyone is buying it, however.
Horsford, a mother of five, died Nov. 4, 2018, after allegedly falling off the 18-foot balcony — which had previously been reported as 8 feet — of a Forsyth County home where she and several other woman had gathered for a sleepover. Her body was discovered the next morning in the backyard, according to authorities.
“She’s laying in the yard, basically on the patio downstairs,” Jose Barrera, the boyfriend of the homeowner, told 911 dispatchers. “She’s not moving one bit. She’s not breathing”
A medical examiner ruled Horsford’s death was the result of an “accidental” fall from a deck that caused “multiple blunt force injuries” to her head and neck, and that “acute ethanol intoxication” (alcohol poisoning) was a contributing factor. The 40-year-old also suffered injuries to her torso and extremities, including a broken neck and dislocated wrist.
Horsford’s best friend, Michelle Graves, argued the toxicology report doesn’t tell the full story but said the autopsy may help bolster what Horsford’s family thinks happened to her, WSB-TV reported. The family hired its own medical examiner, who reportedly found postmortem injuries on Horsford’s body.
Graves questioned why partygoers would leave Horsford on the balcony alone if she was so drunk, and said her friend would’ve had to climb a 4-foot railing to fall over. The woman’s father, Kurtland St. Du Jour, has also spoken out and says he still suspects foul play in his daughter’s death.
“This is so fishy, I just don’t want it to get out of hand,” St. Du Jour told Atlanta radio personality Ryan Cameron, adding he suspects Horsford was thrown from the balcony. “Her wrist was cut, where the body was, there was no blood pool, which means she was already dead.”
Social media critics, who’ve come out by the thousands to demand justice in Horsford’s death, also remain skeptical and accused local media of trying to “smear” the Georgia woman by reporting the results of the toxicology screening.
“She was at a house party! Stop with the victim smearing!’ one Twitter user wrote. “It’s absolutely insane the amount of inconsistencies in this ‘closed’ case. We’re not letting up!”
“I also have to say that there’s more to that as well,” another chimed in. “To be seen and heard soon. Justice and karma is coming soon. There are many many lies in this case and although closed, it’s not over.”
“So, she had weed and booze in her system but who killed her?” one user asked.
Watch more in the video below.
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