Mounce’s cause of death determined

Eastern student Jesse Mounce’s death was caused by asphyxiation due to hanging, said Coles County Coroner Mike Nichols.

Mounce was intoxicated at the time of his death, with a blood alcohol level of 0.082, which is just above the legal limit of 0.08, Nichols said.

No drugs were found in Mounce’s system at the time of his death, Nichols said.

Mounce, a sophomore communications studies major and member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, was found dead at his Ninth Street apartment Feb. 8.

There would be no inquest concerning Mounce’s death, Nichols said.

Nichols is also waiting on lab results from Springfield regarding the death of student Mark Schwartz.

Schwartz, a biological sciences major, was found dead in his off-campus apartment Feb. 29.

Nichols does not know when he will receive the lab results from Springfield and cannot release details of Schwartz’s death until the lab results are in, Nichols said.

Around the time of Schwartz’s death, Nichols said foul play and suicide were not factors in Schwartz’s death.

Stephen Di Benedetto can be reached at 581-7942 or at sdibenedetto@eiu.edu.