Coroner: Springfield Mayor Shot Himself
SPRINGFIELD (CBS) -- An autopsy revealed Wednesday that Springfield Mayor Timothy J. Davlin died of a gunshot wound to the chest, apparently self inflicted.
Sangamon County Coroner Susan Boone's office issued a statement Wednesday stating that an autopsy showed Davlin, 53, apparently shot himself in the chest.
Boone's statement did not indicate whether the two-term Democrat's death has been ruled a suicide or accidental. Boone told The Associated Press she would hold an inquest sometime after the first of the year, leaving it up to that jury to determine whether the shooting was a suicide or something else, including a gun accidentally discharging.
"The autopsy determined it was him alone and not someone else," she said.
Police officials have refused to discuss many details of Davlin's death after he was found dead in his home Tuesday morning.
Because Davlin was Williams' boss, Springfield police handed the investigation over to Illinois State Police.
Since then, police have refused to reveal details of the case, including who made the 911 call.
Davlin failed to appear in court Tuesday morning as ordered in a probate case involving the estate of one of his cousins, Margaret Ettelbrick, who died in 2003. After Davlin's no-show, Circuit Judge Pete Cavanagh removed him as the estate's administrator.
The State Journal-Register reported that Davlin failed to meet a court deadline for a financial accounting of the estate. Patrick "Tim" Timoney withdrew as lawyer for the estate in October, saying he could not come up with a final accounting because Davlin had not provided documentation. Timoney last week submitted a claim against the estate for more than $19,000 in legal fees.
Cavanagh ordered Davlin and Bradley Huff, an attorney for Catholic Charities of Springfield, to appear for Tuesday's hearing to discuss the accounting and the status of attorneys in the estate case.
In October, the newspaper reported that Davlin owed the federal government nearly $90,000 in unpaid income taxes, and liens had been filed against his home. The lien notice filed in the Sangamon County recorder's office showed that Davlin owed income taxes for the years 2003, 2005 and 2006.
At the time, the mayor blamed the problem on a dispute with the IRS over taxes owed on investments he cashed in to buy the home. Sangamon County property records have shown that Davlin bought the home for $237,500 in 2004.
He earned more than $119,000 a year, according to city payroll records from earlier in 2010.
Davlin was nearing the end of his second term as mayor and had not filed to run for another term for the Feb. 22 mayoral election.
Meanwhile, visitation and funeral arrangements have been announced.
Staab Funeral Home says visitation will be from 2 to 7 p.m. Friday at Springfield's Blessed Sacrament Church, where Davlin's funeral will be at 10 a.m. Saturday. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery, with the procession passing Davlin's former mayoral office.
Contributions may be made to the Timothy J. Davlin Grandchildren Scholarship Fund in care of Heartland Credit Union or the Blessed Sacrament Building fund.
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