No 'criminal conduct' in death of Wisconsin graduate student, police say
Eliotte Heinz, 22, was last seen on July 20 after she left a bar in downtown La Crosse, near the Minnesota border about 150 miles southeast of Minneapolis. Her body was found three days later in the Mississippi River.
'Based on the preliminary autopsy results, we do not believe there was any criminal conduct related to Eliotte's death,' La Crosse police said in a news release July 25. 'Final autopsy results will not be completed for several months.'
The investigation is ongoing, police said, adding that they're grateful for the assistance of authorities who helped with the search, as well as Viterbo University staff, students and families.
When police confirmed that Heinz had been found deceased, La Crosse Police Chief Shawn Kudron said in a news release that this was 'not the outcome' the department hoped for.
When USA TODAY asked about Heinz's cause of death on Thursday, July 24, the La Crosse County Medical Examiner said they could not release information.
Eliotte Heinz last seen walking from bar
Heinz was last seen walking in downtown La Crosse around 3:22 a.m. on July 20, police said. According to Viterbo University, where she attended graduate school, she had just left a bar called Bronco's.
As authorities searched for her, they asked downtown businesses and residents to check their properties and cameras; authorities suspected someone may have captured her on footage between 2 a.m. and 9 a.m. on July 20.
Three days after she was last seen, the Houston County Sheriff's Department in Caledonia, Minnesota, contacted La Crosse police about a body in the Mississippi River near Brownsville, Minnesota. The body was eventually identified as Heinz's.
Death of Eliotte Heinz has been 'heavy' for Viterbo University community
Viterbo University said it plans to hold a memorial for her this fall.
Heinz was part of the university's graduate mental health counseling program, her mother, Amber Heinz, told Fox News. She said her daughter was kind with "big blue eyes." She was the oldest of three children, her mother said.
Viterbo University said the past few days have been "heavy for our campus and our hearts."
'As we begin to gently return to the rhythms of campus life, we do so with a deepened sense of connection and care for one another,' the university wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday, July 24. 'May this place continue to be one where kindness, faith, and hope guide us forward.'
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.
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