Experts: Robert Lee Clay could be a victim of foul play

“That the wound was self-inflicted is not supported by the evidence included in the autopsy report,” said Casey Jordan, a professor of justice and law administration at Western Connecticut State University, who along with two other crime scene experts reviewed Clay’s autopsy report upon The Examiner’s request.

Baltimore City police spokesman Matt Jablow reiterated Wednesday the department has no plans to reopen the case.

“The Medical Examiner ruled it a suicide, not the police department,” he said.

Maryland Medical Examiner Ana Rubio told The Examiner Clay died of self-inflicted wounds based on the evidence present for her to review. Clay’s DNA was found on the barrel of a stolen gun believed to have been used in the fatal shooting.

All three said the autopsy report raises more questions than it answers about the death of prominent city businessman and political activist — a death the State Medical Examiner ruled a suicide a year ago, but family members insist was murder.

“The No. 1 problem you have is the fact that he’s right-handed,” said Michael Brady, a criminologist at Salve Regina University. “I was a law enforcement officer for 20 years and I was trained to use both hands, but I’m still going to use my right hand. It’s unusual that someone would use a hand that is not their dominate hand.”

That sentiment was echoed by Jordan, a CNN criminologist consultant, who asked rhetorically: “Why would someone shoot themselves with the wrong hand?”

They also said that most suicides occur in a person’s house.

“In the majority of cases I have investigated, the victim did complete the act in their own home,” said Raymond Rodriguez, an assistant Dean of Kaplan University and a retired detective from the DuPage County, Ill., Sheriff’s Office. “This said, I wouldn’t draw a conclusion from that alone.”

But Rodriguez said he couldn’t get past the fact that no bullet was found at the scene.

“Of all the circumstances described in the articles and [medical examiner’s] report, the one that I find most troubling is that the fired bullet was not recovered,” he said.

“It’s a shooting indoors and there’s nothing to say they found the bullet?” Brady asked rhetorically. “Where did it go? A good crime scene investigation is going to go back to the scene and ask, ‘Where in God’s name is it?’ ”

Rodriguez also said he believed it troubling that police were using an undisclosed finding of gunshot residue on Clay’s hands as evidence of a suicide.

“This can happen with the hands in a defensive posture as well as when holding the firearm,” he said. “Correlation does not necessarily imply causation.”

Jordan said she took issue with the trajectory of the bullet.

“The indication that the gun was fired with direct contact to the skull [no stippling on the outside of the skull means it was a contact wound with a tight seal] is consistent with suicide, but the angle of the gun — as indicated by entry and exit wounds — is not,” she said. “The forward traveling and somewhat upward path is unusual.”

Jordan also said the fractures to Clay’s head could have resulted from a fight prior to the shooting.

“Perhaps the base of his skull hit the bannister on the stairs?” she said. “Or perhaps he was hit at the back of [the] head prior to shooting?”

CRIME SCENE EXPERTS FINDINGS

» Failing to find a bullet or fragments at an enclosed crime scene is an extreme rarity for a shooting that occurs inside a building.

» A “rare” place to commit suicide. Clay was shot inside his office — a rare, but not unheard of, place to commit a suicide.

» An “unusual” self-inflicted wound. Clay, who was right-handed, was shot in the left side of his head, an unusual way for a self-inflicted wound to occur.

» The angle of the bullet path suggests it was not suicide.

sjanus@baltimoreexaminer.com

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