Critics Cry Foul After Medical Examiner Says CDC Researcher Killed Himself

Timothy Cunningham (Photo via ADP & Buzz60)

The Fulton County Medical Examiner has ruled the death of the CDC researcher who was found dead in the Chattahoochee River as a suicide by drowning.

Timothy Cunningham, 35, worked as an epidemiologist with the CDC and disappeared February 14. He reportedly left work early that day and claimed he wasn’t feeling well. However, when authorities checked his Atlanta home, all of his belongings were there including his wallet and cell phone.

After months of his family and police officials searching for the CDC doctor, his body was discovered by men fishing along the riverbank on April 3. His body took a while to be identified because it was badly decomposed from being in the water for almost two months. Chief medical examiner Jan Gorniak told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the toxicology report indicated traces of marijuana in Cunningham’s system and no other evidence of trauma. No one knows how Cunningham arrived at the river which is a 20 mile walk away from his home.

“There was no evidence of foul play,” Gorniak added.

Cunningham’s parents informed investigators that their son was acting differently days before he disappeared and reports said he was upset about a CDC promotion that he didn’t receive, although the center refuted those claims. His parents filed a missing person’s report after not being able to reach their son via phone.

The Atlanta Police Department has closed the investigation into Cunningham’s disappearance and death, but people are questioning whether or not the CDC’s doctor death was an actual suicide.

https://twitter.com/PoliticalPrue/status/999267975533383680

People’s suspicions come from an interview Cunningham did in January where he claimed that “Flu-Shots” were the cause of several deadly outbreaks. He also asked YoursNewsWire to add his name to the story in case something happened.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Back to top