Still No Resolution In Scott Death Probe

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Nov 19, 2009 10:20PM

With questions still lingering around the circumstances of the death of Michael Scott, the Chicago Police is not rushing to issue its ruling. Still, in light of recent discoveries in the investigation, it seems that they may be inclined to issue a ruling in line with the one the Cook County Medical Examiner's office issued earlier this week and has been forced to defend. Among other discoveries:

• Searchers found Scott's money clip, complete with cash, ID, and credit cards, undermining any robbery theories.
• Gun residue was detected on Scott's left hand.
• The gun, found under Scott's body, was registered to Scott.

Still, CPD commissioner Jody Weis is playing it slow and steady, saying, "We want to see whether there is any indication someone might have been with him ... I don't want to make any judgment at this time until we have all the facts. We want to be thorough. We want to be complete. And we will follow the evidence." Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Scott family told the Sun-Times that the family is considering asking for an independent autopsy to confirm the ME's findings as friends and family continue to have difficulty accepting suicide as cause of death.

Someone else having a difficult time with Scott's death is his close colleague Mayor Daley. First, Daley expressed frustration with ME Nancy Jones, saying:

"Enough with the medical examiner. Let's stop this. You want 15 minutes of fame? They gave it to you...The Chicago Police Department has a responsibility to check everything. I'm sorry. They don't rush to conclusions. They cannot do that. You have to look at everything. If something came up at the last minute, and you did not check it -- that is the responsibility of the Chicago Police Department."

And then yesterday afternoon, Daley lashed out at Fox 32's Tera Williams after she asked him how Scott's death might affect his political career. Daley lashed out at Williams and stormed off the podium, ending his press conference.