CASE 2: Officer Antonio “Tony” Hernandez Jr.
Demographic
52-year-old, White Male, Hispanic, 67″ tall, 150 pounds at the time of death. Body Mass Index
(BMI) 23.5 (Normal). Tony was divorced with no children and lived alone. He had been
divorced from his wife for about a month. This was his only marriage. After the final paperwork
was complete on the divorce, Tony seemed to go into a deep depression and became nearly
despondent. Tony had no history of depression or alcohol abuse. However, his mother had died
by suicide. The underlying reason is unknown.
Tony was a veteran police officer with a large municipality. He had received several awards for
heroism and bravery. Tony served approximately 15 years with his agency prior to his passing.
He was a highly decorated Army veteran who served two tours overseas. Tony was never
diagnosed with PTSD, but he told friends and co-workers that he believed he suffered from it.
Tony was noted as being a casual drinker, but friends and relatives said his use of alcohol in the
past months had become concerning and problematic. Several of Tony’s coworkers noted him
calling in more often and that he had even left early the day he was discovered deceased.
Tony died as a result asphyxia due to ligature strangulation (See Simulated Autopsy Report). A
relative went to check on him after noticing some disturbing posts on his social media page and
being unable to reach him by phone.
[Facebook post: “I’m sorry but I just couldn’t go on without her.”]
[Facebook post: “Angela, I love you.”]
Tony was discovered suspended by an extension cord over the second-floor stair railing. The
divorce papers he received that day were pinned to his shirt. He was still dressed in his uniform.
Suicide Note
No note was discovered, but two separate social media posts were noted. Several text messages
were also sent to Tony’s ex-wife [Angela] though she did not respond to any of them. Angela
said that after seeing the third text, she became concerned and called 911.
Text 1: Please call me, we need to talk.
Text 2: I love you, why can’t you love me.
Text 3: Goodbye.
Background
Tony was the youngest of two children. He was extremely close to his older brother Juan, until
Juan’s unexpected passing about five years ago. Juan was tragically killed in an automobile
accident. Tony took his death extremely hard. Tony lost his mother to suicide when he was in
high school. That was a loss he never fully seemed to recover from. His father is still alive but
suffers from many physical issues. Tony and his father are also very close. Tony is his father’s
sole caregiver. As a young man, Tony was exceptionally bright and gifted. He had book smarts
and the ability to speak with anyone. This seemed to pave the way for his career in law
enforcement.
A few years after high school Tony joined the Army. He wanted to get away and to see the
world. After two enlistments, Tony wanted to come back home to be closer to his father and
extended family. Upon moving back, a friend told him about several openings at the local police
department. Tony seemed like an excellent fit. Tony applied at the local police department and
was soon going through the hiring process, background, and eventually the academy and field
training. Tony excelled at nearly everything. He loved his new job and that was his focus in life.
He did not have much of a social life. He wanted to devote all of his time and energy into his
new career.
About a year prior to his death, Tony met Angela. She was a records clerk at the courthouse. The
two really seemed to hit it off. Tony was actually in his first real relationship. He dated casually
in the military, but he had more one-night stands and never wanted to settle down. Tony and
Angela were inseparable. Several of Tony’s co-workers noted the change in his personality as
being more positive, but that his work seemed to suffer a bit. They noted that he seemed to be
more tired and burning the candle at both ends. Many of them wrote it off to being in love.
Several months into the relationship Tony proposed and the two eloped. Tony’s family and
friends were shocked but were happy for him to be settling down. Shortly after marrying, Tony
noticed Angela began acting distant and secretive. Angela seemed to avoid Tony’s affection and
he had caught her in several lies. Tony suspected she was being unfaithful and began monitoring
her social media pages, her cell phone, and who she was hanging around. The two were
constantly arguing and Angela on more than one occasion threatened divorce if Tony would not
stop being so jealous and possessive. Tony agreed to her conditions initially, until Angela began
receiving text messages from her old boyfriend. Tony confronted Angela and she confessed that
the two had never stopped seeing each other even after they were married. Tony was devastated
and heartbroken. He wanted Angela to stop seeing this other man and to go to marriage
counseling. Angela refused to do either. Nine months after the two eloped, Tony was served with
divorce papers at work the day he was found deceased. Tony was on patrol when his shift
sergeant called him back to the station. The Sergeant Notified Tony of the process server in the
lobby. Tony was utterly humiliated. He signed for the papers and went back out on patrol. After
about 3 minutes, Tony became emotionally upset and called his Sergeant back and asked to leave
early.
END OF SCENARIO
