First appearance on Fox: Experts who reviewed the medical examiner's report into the suicide of a St. Louis-area woman whose body was found in her fiancé's home say the circumstances are suspicious and warrant further investigation.
Police in Creve Coeur, Missouri, announced that on the morning of July 22, 2020, Grace Holland, 35, shot herself in the head at the home of her boyfriend, local firefighter Robert Daus. A re-investigation of the incident by the county police also came to a conclusion. Her death was a suicide.
Police have not charged Dauss with a crime, but the case has regained attention after his second girlfriend, Dr. Sarah Sweeney, 39, was found dead in her home. .
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The 2020 shooting of Grace Holland was ruled a suicide after two police investigations. However, her family disputes the findings. (Grace Holland/Facebook)
Creve Coeur Police Chief Jeffrey Hartman, when contacted Wednesday, supported his department's investigation and said county police reviewed the incident and came to the same conclusion: suicide. He also urged people to avoid speculation about Sweeney's death, as autopsy results are not yet available.
St. Louis County police were asked to review Holland's death and considered it a suicide, said Sgt. Tracy Panas, the department's public information officer, told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. She said the findings will be sent to the St. Louis County Prosecutor's Office for final review, and the case will remain “in progress” until that process is completed.
The coroner's report obtained by Fox News Digital contained several red flags, according to longtime homicide investigators who reviewed the document.
Reports say she committed suicide by being shot in the head at close range and had become depressed after enduring a second miscarriage.
read a book by grace holland autopsy report:
The autopsy report said the bullet entered her through her left temple, traveled “slightly backwards” from the left temple to the right, and stopped near the back of her skull. First responders found a gun, a .380 caliber Glock 42, near her right hand.
“I think it's inherently questionable just looking at the facts alone. And there are a lot of questions, especially now that the second incident is happening.”
Her family is suing Dauss in a wrongful death lawsuit, arguing that she is right-handed and that the gunshot wound to the left side of her head was suspicious, as was the missing $20,000 engagement ring. are doing.
“This is all questionable,” Pat Diaz, a longtime Miami-Dade County homicide detective, told Fox News Digital after reading the coroner's report. “If you're right-handed and your temple is on the left side, that's a sure sign that something is wrong.”
Listen to the Missouri 911 call about Grace Holland's death.
He noted the way her hand was running across her stomach.
“The hand falls to the ground,” he said. “I want to know if they put gunshot residue on her hands and his hands and if they did any lab work on that.”
Diaz said an autopsy suggested the gun misfired once before the fatal shot and then jammed.
“It's on the left, facing backwards. It's at an odd angle,” said Joseph Giacalone, a former NYPD sergeant and professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He also wanted to know more about the position of her hands when she was discovered.
Grace Holland and Robert Daus are pictured in a 2020 photo posted on her Facebook page. Her death in July 2020 was ruled a suicide after multiple investigations. (Grace Holland/Facebook)
“Photography is going to be key here,” he says.
County health officials told Fox News Digital that the images will not be released as public records.
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Holland's family also claims that text messages between Holland and Daus indicate an abusive relationship. Excerpts from the complaint show the couple argued and Daus repeatedly told her he wanted to call off things. Holland had four daughters from her previous relationship.
Sweeney's sudden death on January 13 is the focus of the Frontenac Police Department's “sudden death” investigation. Tim Duda told Fox News Digital. Her autopsy and toxicology report are expected to be completed within the next three to five weeks.
Dr. Sarah Sweeney (left) and Grace Holland were both reportedly found dead in Robert Dowse's home after years apart. (The Sweeney Family | Grace Holland/Facebook)
Frontenac police said they found Sweeney dead at 6:39 a.m. on Jan. 13. The department said in a statement that Sweeney had “no obvious signs of trauma.”
Her mother, Teresa Sweeney Wright, told Fox News Digital that doctors also diagnosed her with mast cell activation syndrome. The condition could be life-threatening, but her daughter managed it with medication and carried an EpiPen.
Anyone with information about Holland's death can contact St. Louis county police Call 314-615-5400. The investigation into Sweeney's death is being handled by the Frontenac Police Department (314-373-6509).
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“As a result of the investigation, she [died] “As a result of murder, her death should be thoroughly investigated as such, and I pray that those responsible will be held accountable,” Hartman said. Surveillance will also be strengthened.” However, we have not yet received a verdict on Sarah's cause of death. ”
