(Updated) Authorities investigating possible foul play in death of former elementary school principal
Authorities are investigating the possibility that foul play may have been involved in the death of a former elementary school principal in St. Mary Parish.
At 10:10 a.m. Monday, the Morgan City Police Department responded to a reported medical emergency at a home in the 1200 block of Walnut Drive in Morgan City. Officers arrived and discovered a female resident, Patricia Lynne Russo, 70, inside the home. Emergency personnel were dispatched to the scene, but Russo was already deceased, according to a Morgan City police news release.
Russo served as principal of Maitland Elementary in Morgan City from 1988-91, principal of J.S. Aucoin Elementary in Amelia from 1991-2001 and Title I instructional specialist for St. Mary Parish public schools from 2001 until her retirement in 2004, said Teresa Bagwell, assistant superintendent for St. Mary Parish public schools.
Morgan City police investigators were summoned to the scene Monday to assist and attempt to determine a cause of death. Detectives arrived and encountered evidence which warranted further investigation, the release said. Detectives and officers preserved the scene for investigative purposes.
The St. Mary Parish Coroner’s Office was notified and summoned to the scene. Morgan City police investigators worked to contact immediate family members and caregivers.
Investigators discovered in their initial assessment that circumstances and evidence existed that indicated the possibility that foul play may have been involved, the release said. The Morgan City Police Department is continuing the investigation until a cause of death has been determined by the St. Mary Parish Coroner’s Office.
The body has been turned over to the St. Mary Parish Coroner and an autopsy is pending. Whatever is revealed as the cause of death, whether suspicious or natural, there is no indication that this incident was a random act, police said.
Anyone with any information that may assist investigators and those homeowners that have home video surveillance systems in the area should contact the Morgan City Police Department Detectives Division at 985-380-4605.