Coroner Rules Ex-Bills WR James Hardy’s Death A Suicide

The Allen County (Indiana) Coroner’s Office has determined that former Buffalo Bills wide receiver James Hardy’s death was a suicide.

Ex-Bills WR James Hardy Suicide

Chief investigator Michael Burris specified in a statement on Wednesday that the cause of Hardy’s death was asphyxia due to drowning, according to ESPN.

Burris added that the determination of Hardy’s suicide was made based on his medical and psychiatric records, his interactions with law enforcement and other evidence, including some found on his corpse.

Hardy’s body was discovered lodge in a dam in the Maumee River in his hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana on June 7, weeks after he was reported missing. He was 31.

The former wideout played two seasons with the Bills, from 2008 to 2010.

The Bills and the University of Indiana’s football program — for whom Hardy played before Buffalo drafted him as a second-round pick — both released statements on the former wideout’s death on Twitter in which they offered their condolences to the former player’s friends and family.

During his time with the Hoosiers, Hardy amassed 191 receptions for 2,740 yards and 36 touchdowns.

Hardy also compiled ten passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games (three of which he started) during his two-year NFL career.

The former receiver — who also briefly played for the Baltimore Ravens in 2011 before injuries forced him to retire early — was detained in Los Angeles for resisting arrest in a confrontation with police in 2014. However, a judge later ruled him mentally incompetent to stand trial and he was admitted into a mental institution, per TMZ.

According to Indiana channel WANE, Hardy’s mother Jeanie Summerville reported him missing form Fort Wayne on May 30, five days after she last saw him alive. She revealed what her son’s last words to her were.

“He says, ‘Mom I’ve got to leave, I’ve got to get out of town,’” said Summerville. “I said ‘Why, where are you going?’ And he says, ‘I’ve got to go. If I don’t go, I’m going to die tonight.’ Those were his words.”

In other NFL news, Dallas police have suspended their investigation into Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott’s involvement in an alleged assault at a bar on Sunday night in the Texas city, citing lack of sufficient evidence and an inability to contact the victim as their reasons.

JACKSONVILLE, FL – SEPTEMBER 14: Wide receiver James Hardy #81 of the Buffalo Bills comes down with a touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter over Rashean Mathis #27 of the Jacksonville Jaguars at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium on September 14, 2008 in Jacksonville, Florida. The Bills defeated the Jaguars 20-16. (Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)