Megan Trussell's family question investigation

Axios

09-07-2025

The parents of Megan Trussell, the University of Colorado student found dead in February in Boulder Canyon, believe investigators were too quick to rule their daughter's death a suicide and have launched an independent investigation in the hope of getting the case reexamined.
Catch up quick: Trussell, 18, was last seen leaving the CU Boulder campus on the night of Feb. 9. She was found dead near the 40-mile marker on Boulder Canyon Drive on Feb. 15.
The Boulder County Coroner's Office ruled in May that Trussell, who was prescribed Adderall in 2019, died from "toxic effects of amphetamine, and exposure to a cold environment."
The death was ruled a suicide based on "toxicology results and the presence of undigested prescription medication" among other factors, the coroner's office stated.
Yes, but: Independent coroners told the Boulder Reporting Lab that the sheer number of pills did support the suicide finding.
Driving the news: Trussell's parents requested further testing of the undigested medication in her stomach, and they said last week the coroner's office agreed.
The family also gave out care packages in Central Park last Friday to see if anyone in the unhoused community had information that could be relevant to the case.
Friction point: Trussell's father, Joe, told Axios Boulder he felt investigators were quick to rule the case a suicide "because that was the easiest conclusion for them to come to."
He added: "I was expecting a narrative of some sort, a story … We got none of that. They basically just said, 'Suicide, any questions?'"
"They had no sense of urgency, and I felt they had no curiosity," Trussell's mother Vanessa Diaz told us.
The other side: Boulder County Sheriff Curtis Johnson released a statement saying that "detectives and deputies conducted a thorough investigation of Megan's death based on the available evidence."
"This was a tragic situation," Johnson stated, adding officials with both the sheriff's and coroner's offices met several times with the family attorney to discuss the case.
Trussell's parents described their daughter, a film major and bass player, as a laid-back, unique, upbeat and friendly person who "packed a lot into 18 years."
"She was cool; she was my little soulmate," Joe Trussell said.
Between the lines: Joe Trussell said his daughter had no history of self-harm nor history of suicidal thoughts they knew of. No suicide note was found.
Trussell's parents said even if their daughter was suicidal, the location and method "didn't make sense."
The sheriff's office called the area where Trussell was found " hard-to-reach terrain," and her parents said Trussell was neither a hiker nor a cyclist and would have had no reason to know about the area.
Joe Trussell said a friend who lives in Boulder and rides his bike in the canyon regularly went to the site and told them, "I had no idea this culvert existed. … Nothing will ever convince me that your daughter walked up here."
The parents told Axios Boulder that other evidence pointed to foul play.
Diaz said the pathologist was too quick to attribute facial and head injuries to the terrain and not a possible assault.
Trussell was found with only one shoe, but damage on the exposed sock was to the heel, not the sole, which Diaz felt indicated Trussell had been dragged.
Trussell's purse was found by a community member near the 39.6-mile marker of U.S. 36 along the bike path, several miles from her body.
Her phone was sold at a Boulder grocery store on March 2 by a man experiencing homelessness who said he'd received it from another unhoused person.
What they're saying: Trussell's parents said community members have shared their outrage at the ruling and the perceived lack of investigation.
Joe Trussell said searching for the answer "doesn't bring Megan back," but it's a matter of community safety.
"Grief is going to be with me the rest of my life," he said. "But as long as it takes, we're going to keep doing this."
What's next: Though the case is closed, the sheriff's office told Axios Boulder it would reopen the investigation if new evidence warrants doing so.
The Trussell family said they are looking at hiring a private investigator and getting an autopsy review as they continue their "grassroots" effort to reopen the case.
Diaz has taken leave as an elementary school teacher to investigate, poring over a binder full of reports and getting billed $700 for requesting video evidence.