1999-2010

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Under scrutiny, Las Vegas Review-Journal publishes a third story on the Danny Gans case



After two weeks of patient waiting in the case of the unexplained premature death of Strip superstar Danny Gans, the Las Vegas Review-Journal has gone into Danny Gans overdrive this morning, adding a third story to today's online edition.

The deluge of Gans stories follows two weeks of scrutiny by TabloidBaby.com and our exclusive story posted last night that Review-Journal editors and reporters had good leads and opinions as to what killed Danny Gans at 52, but have failed to pursue or publish.

Now, along with a column addressing suicide rumors and another revealing an "insurance issue... that suggests Gans had concerns about his health," the Review-Journal site features "Coroner awaits facts to reveal cause of Gans' death":


"The mystery of Danny Gans' death remains almost two weeks after he died in his home, leaving rumors to fill the information void.

"Clark County Coroner Mike Murphy has heard the rumors, but doesn't care about rumors.

"He cares about facts, specifically those that are uncovered by the investigators and doctors in his office who are charged with determining the causes of death for the 52-year-old impressionist and thousands of others who die in the county each year.

"'It's kind of a total picture, and that's what we're trying to do, is put all the pieces of the puzzle together,' Murphy said.

"Gans died May 1 at his Henderson home... The coroner's office performed an autopsy the day he died but has not determined his cause of death. The office was awaiting the results of toxicology tests that were sent to an independent lab after the autopsy.

"Murphy wouldn't offer more details about the Gans case...

"The samples are sent to an independent lab for testing, which can take an estimated two to four weeks.

"Once the coroner's office receives the test results, at least two and as many as four forensic pathologists will review them along with the autopsy results and come up with a cause of death, he said.

"That process could take as little as a day, but it could take weeks, especially if more tests are required, he said.

"'The reality is we don't do it within 60 minutes with commercials,' Murphy said."

Results could come this week.

Mike Murphy is not a doctor. According to Steve Miller of Inside Vegas, "In 2003, before the Clark County Commission appointed him coroner, Michael Murphy was a police officer in Kansas City, Missouri and Boulder City, Nevada. He was also the Chief of Police in tiny Mesquite, Nevada, and once worked for the City of Las Vegas Enforcement Division."

Review-Journal columnist Norm Clarke revealed last week that his paper had made a deal with Gans' family and manager to publish the Danny Gans autobiography.

1 comment:

Sally Roll said...

I just caught up with your work on this story. Nice job.