Fulton ME: Hypothermia likely killed Stacey English

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By Christian Boone

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Authorities say they now know how Stacey Nicole English died, though it's doubtful anyone will ever know why the 36-year-old Buckhead woman perished.

Atlanta Police Department Stacey Nicole English, 36, disappeared on or about Dec. 25.

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On Tuesday, the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office announced that English, who was missing for nearly a month before her body was discovered in a wooded area near Lakewood Fairgrounds, most likely died from hypothermia, and her death was accidental.

There was no evidence of bodily harm, and toxicology tests showed no evidence of a drug overdose, the Medical Examiner's Office said in a statement.

"Based on a combination of information sources including the autopsy, the sequence of events and circumstances, toxicology results, medical and mental health records, and statements of witnesses and acquaintances, the most likely cause of Stacey English’s death is cold exposure complicating underlying neurological and psychiatric disorders," the statement reads.

"Because cold exposure is an external, environmental condition, the manner of death has been classified as accident.

Atlanta police said in a statement they now consider the case closed "as a result of the findings of the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office and the investigation conducted by the Atlanta Police Homicide Unit."

English's badly decomposed body was found, nestled in a hole created by an uprooted tree, on Jan. 23 by two men searching for scrap metal. The SunTrust instructional designer's Volvo had been discovered abandoned, with the engine running, on Dec. 27 less than a mile away.

Robert Kirk, of St. Louis, was the last person known to have seen English. He told detectives the woman began “acting peculiar” the night of Dec. 26, asking him if he was Satan. Another friend of English's shared a similar account with police.

According to the incident report, English’s mother, Cindy Jamison, told investigators her daughter, a Fayette County High School graduate, had attempted suicide nearly three years ago and said she was taking an undisclosed medication.

But in the days and weeks following her disappearance, family members insisted they did not believe she would intentionally harm herself.

"There's no doubt in my mind that there had to be some foul play," Jamison said in a Jan. 26 interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

English's mother and stepfather Kevin Jamison did not return calls seeking comment Tuesday.