Vermont State Police and New Hampshire officials have not released autopsy results for Macadam Mason, the 39-year-old artist from Thetford who died after he was tased by Senior Trooper David Shaffer.
It is unclear at this point when the results will be released. At issue is whether the electric shock from the Taser will be ruled the cause of death. Mason had epilepsy. It is not known whether his condition was a factor.
Mason was pronounced dead at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., and therefore his autopsy is under the jurisdiction of the New Hampshire medical examiner’s office. The autopsy of Mason’s body was conducted on June 21, less than 24 hours after his death.
Vermont State Police initially said it could be days or weeks before the results are released.
A week after Mason died, Keith Flynn, the commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, told Susie Steimle of WCAX that autopsy results were expected to take four to six weeks after that June 27 interview. The six-week window closes Wednesday, Aug. 9. State police say the results may be “several weeks” away.
Detective Lance Burnham, who was at one point the contact person between the New Hampshire medical examiner’s office and the Vermont State Police, said in a July 12 interview that the results could take six to eight weeks from the date of the autopsy.
State officials, including Gov. Peter Shumlin and Flynn, have often pointed to the fact that the Taser has not been officially ruled a cause of Mason’s death when they talk about whether the state should change its Taser policies or adopt a moratorium on the stun guns.
In response to an inquiry about the autopsy results, Vermont State Police Public Information Officer Stephanie Dasaro wrote that she asked Major Ed Ledo, commander of the state police criminal division, and he “advised that it could be several weeks before all the tests are complete and a cause of death is determined. At this time, there is no new information to report.”
Days after the autopsy was conducted, officials said the New Hampshire medical examiner’s office was waiting for the return of toxicology reports to determine an official cause of death. Now, Dasaro says, she doesn’t know what they’re waiting on.
“We’re not going to speculate. We’re not going to second-guess what’s going on,” Dasaro said in an interview. “I don’t know what else to tell you.”