Vigo Co. Coroner Susan Amos released toxicology results today for the late Dr. George "Scott" Samson of Terre Haute, who allegedly shot and killed his newly-wed wife, Kelly Ecker, only hours after their marriage ceremony and just minutes after the last guest had left an after-party at their Terre Haute home before turning a gun on himself. Dr. Samson's blood alcohol level was well above the legal limit of 0.08 at 0.143 according to Amos.
Amos tells the Terre Haute Tribune Star the toxicology results showed no presence of illegal drugs in Dr. Samson's blood, only prescribed medications at normal therapeutic levels. The report doesn't indicate what prescribed medications were present in his blood. Some medications specifically warn patients against combining alcohol with their use because of adverse side effects, including mental impairment.
Dr. Samson was an emergency room physician at Terre Haute's Union Hospital. His wife Kelly Ecker worked as a nurse in the hospital's intensive care unit. The couple reportedly argued over money at their wedding reception following their wedding ceremony according to guests. News of the tragic murder-suicide gained international media attention. Police removed a large cache of guns and ammunition from the home following the incident. Dr. Samson possessed a federal firearms license to buy and sell guns.
"Dr. Samson's blood alcohol level was well above the legal limit of 0.08 at 0.143 according to Amos."
ReplyDeletePlease be careful with this casual use of a very serious term.
There is no "legal limit" for sitting around your house. Government has not imposed an omnipresent crime of intoxication. One can be as drunk as one wants in one's own house.
The blood alcohol level is important to understand the degree of his impairment at the time of the shooting. I'm operating under the theory Dr. Samson was not a cold-blooded murderer. I really would like to know what prescription drugs were in his blood at the time of the shooting. A combination of the wrong drugs in his blood could explain the irrational, violent behavior.
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