Crime & Safety
Woman Found Dead in Downtown Joliet; Possible Cold Victim
The victim, identified as 55-year-old Willie Mae White, was found in the 200 block of North Chicago Street, the coroner's office said.
Update/4:50 p.m.
The woman has been identified as Willie Mae White, a 55-year-old homeless person.
An autopsy conducted Tuesday shows that the preliminary cause of death was cold exposure, but the final ruling will not be made until toxicology tests are completed. The Joliet Police Department is handling the investigation.
Original post:
A woman was discovered dead in downtown Joliet early Tuesday morning, believed to be the victim of cold exposure, the Will County coroner's office said.
Her body was found at about 3:30 a.m. in the 200 block of North Chicago Street, which is near the intersection of Cass Street, the coroner reported.
Her identity is being withheld pending the notification of her family.
An autopsy will be conducted at a later date, but preliminary indications are the cause of death is cold exposure, the coroner's office said.
If that was the cause, it would be the second hypothermia-related death in Joliet and the third in Will County.
In mid-December, a Joliet man was discovered frozen to death in his back yard. It's believed he either fell or suffered a medical condition that caused him to fall, reports said. And just last week, a Geneva man -- missing since November after he left Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital -- was found frozen to death in a Bolingbrook field.
There have also been three deaths attributed to heart attacks that may have been triggered by shoveling snow -- two in Joliet and one in Bolingbrook.
And, finally, a Joliet man was discovered dead in Chicago. The Cook County medical examiner's office said the fatality was caused by cold exposure/hypothermia, coupled with ethanol intoxication.
Her identity is being withheld pending the notification of her family.
An autopsy will be conducted at a later date, but preliminary indications are the cause of death is cold exposure, the coroner's office said.
If that was the cause, it would be the second hypothermia-related death in Joliet and the third in Will County.
In mid-December, a Joliet man was discovered frozen to death in his back yard. It's believed he either fell or suffered a medical condition that caused him to fall, reports said. And just last week, a Geneva man -- missing since November after he left Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital -- was found frozen to death in a Bolingbrook field.
There have also been three deaths attributed to heart attacks that may have been triggered by shoveling snow -- two in Joliet and one in Bolingbrook.
And, finally, a Joliet man was discovered dead in Chicago. The Cook County medical examiner's office said the fatality was caused by cold exposure/hypothermia, coupled with ethanol intoxication.
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