[Editor's Note: The following findings do not suggest in any way that Chavis Carter committed suicide, handcuffed in the back of a police car, with a hidden gun that eluded two searches. It is the opinion of this editor that just because Carter had drugs in his system, it does not make him a magical contortionist with a spontaneous death wish. As previously reported by NewsOne.com, the autopsy report -- conveniently -- does not indicate whether or not gun residue was found on his hands.]
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A man police say shot himself in the head while his hands were cuffed behind him in the back of an Arkansas patrol car tested positive for methamphetamine, anti-anxiety medication and other drugs, according to an autopsy report released Monday that listed his death as a suicide.
View autopsy report here.
RELATED: Chavis Carter Case: Police Release Dash Cam Video From Night Carter Died
The state crime lab report said the muzzle of a handgun that Chavis Carter apparently concealed from arresting officers was placed against his right temple when it was fired. The report, signed by three medical examiners, included a drug analysis showing Carter’s urine and blood indicated methamphetamine and other drug use.
The report, released to The Associated Press and other news organizations under a Freedom of Information Act request, said Carter’s blood also tested positive for at least trace amounts of the anti-anxiety medication diazepam and the painkiller oxycodone. His urine test also returned a positive result for marijuana.
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The report said Carter’s death was ruled a suicide based on autopsy findings and investigative conclusions from the Jonesboro Police Department, which has faced questions from Carter’s family and community members about the circumstances surrounding the July 28 shooting.
“He was cuffed and placed into a police car, where apparently he produced a weapon, and despite being handcuffed, shot himself in the head,” the report said.
Benjamin Irwin, a Memphis, Tenn., lawyer representing Carter’s family, declined to comment on the specifics of the toxicology report, calling instead for police to release details of any gunpowder residue or other such tests.
“If those tests were taken … what were the results?” Irwin asked.
On Monday night dozens of Carter family supporters gathered outside the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tenn., for a candlelight vigil.
Carter’s mother, Teresa Carter, wiped her eyes as people spoke about her late son.
“My heart is so heavy,” she said.
She didn’t talk about the autopsy results as she addressed the small crowd, but others did. One man read part of the autopsy report as he stood at the podium and some continued to demand answers about how Chavis Carter died.
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