Drowning death near Qulin probably accidental, tests show

FARMINGTON, Mo. -- No signs of foul play were found during a Thursday autopsy of a Doniphan, Missouri, man whose body was recovered in a drainage ditch near where his truck and dog were found.

The preliminary ruling of Dr. Russell Deidiker, who completed the autopsy of Jamie Ferrill at Mineral Area Regional Medical Center at Farmington, and that of the Butler County Coroner's Office, are the same, said Coroner Jim Akers, who indicated this "appeared to be a drowning death."

Akers said samples were taken during the autopsy for toxicology analysis. Toxicology results typically take a month to six weeks to be returned.

Factoring into that ruling, Akers said, was the fact the 40-year-old's body was not found immediately.

Ferrill's body, Akers said, was "starting to float, which, typically, if someone dies and is placed in the water, they'll float a lot sooner than if they drown."

The last contact anyone had with Ferrill reportedly was the night of April 2, and authorities began searching for him April 3 after family members reported him missing.

Ferrill's truck and dog had been found earlier in the day on a farm field road, which runs parallel to the drainage ditch, southeast of the Black River bridge near Qulin, Missouri. A boot also was found near the truck.

Emergency responders from multiple agencies searched the area by foot, water and air for the next five days.

At about 12:15 p.m. Wednesday, Ferrill's body was found about 400 yards downstream from his truck.

Authorities reported he was just slightly below the surface and about 6 feet from the bank.

Based on the scene and information gathered by the sheriff's department, "We're still treating (Ferrill's death) as a homicide, but, at this point, nothing indicates it's anything other an accidental," said Akers, who indicated it is "proper procedure" to treat a death as a homicide until "you can rule that out."

Officials, Akers said, will continue to investigate all leads and wait for toxicology results to be completed before making a final determination as to Ferrill's cause of death.