First-year student Jordan Crist died from acute alcohol poisoning according to a report released today by the Dallas County Medical Examiner.
Crist had a blood alcohol level of .4 – five times the legal limit. Guidelines and charts from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said that at least 15 drinks would be necessary to have a BAC that high.
The cause of death was listed as accidental.
Investigators said diabetes insipidus was not a contributing factor to Crist’s death. Crist’s family said diabetes was the cause of death in an obituary printed in the Chicago Tribune.
Crist was found unresponsive in a dorm room on the third floor of Perkins Hall on May 2.
The first call for help was received that day at 10:22 a.m., with University Park fire and emergency personnel responding along with SMU Police.
SMU Police were first on the scene and attempted CPR on Crist, but they said he was not in good shape. A few minutes after that, UP personnel arrived and also began efforts to revive Crist. They moved Crist into the hallway and continued to work, but he was unresponsive to any efforts. Witnesses said Crist’s face looked blue.
UP paramedics transported Crist to Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas, where he was declared dead at 11:05 a.m. the same day.
Crist, 19, was from Hinsdale, Ill.
Crist was the second SMU student to die this school year two days before final exams begin.
Sophomore Jacob “Jake” Stiles was found dead in his room in the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house two days before final exams in the fall. The cause of his death was a lethal cocktail of expensive prescription pain killer fentanyl, cocaine and alcohol, according to a report from the Dallas County Medical Examiner.
Stiles was from Naperville, Ill., which is 12 miles away from Hinsdale. Both cities are suburbs of Chicago.
Dallas Police are still investigating the death of senior Meghan Bosch. She was the third SMU student to die during the 2006/07 school year. She went missing during final exams and was found dead in a portable toilet at a construction site in near Waco, on May 14.
Investigators located her drug dealer, James McDaniel, 46, Wednesday afternoon. He was passed out in a University Park apartment and transported to an area hospital. Police want to question him for additional information.
Posted 3:45 p.m. Wed., May 23. Updated 11:05 p.m.