MArlowe Mock trial

Dr.

Can you please introduce yourself, spelling your last name for the record?

My name is Dr. Grey Marlowe, M-A-R-L-O-W-E

What do you do for a living?

I am a private sports medicine physician

What is your education?

I got my bachelors at Southern Plains University and my doctortate from Bay Ridge University. I stayed there for a year as a part of my residency before going on to do my fellowship with the University of Michigan.

What are some of your qualfications?

Since earning my fellowship in 2001 I have worked as a Forensic Medical Examiner, Sports medicine consultant, Professor of sports medicine, and then Chief Physician of the midland meteors before leaving to start my own sports Medicine Consulting firm

So how are you involved in today’s case?

I was approached by the producers of the TV show to review the case surrounding the untimely passing of Rob Armstrong

What information did you review in preparation for today?

First, I reviewed the report and autopsy done by the medical examiner. Then, I reviewed Mr. Armstrong’s body, bloodwork, and tissue samples, as well as the dive footage and obstacle course from the episode’s challenge.

What principles and methods did you use?

Based on my experience conducting autopsies, I conducted physical observations of Mr. Armstrong’s body and based on my expertise in forensic pathology and biochemistry, I reviewed and analyzed several exhibits in today’s case using the gold standard practices and peer-reviewed methods

Was this method reliably applied to the facts and data used in today’s case?

Yes, it was

Moving onto your work, what was your impression on Mr. Armstrong’s cause of death?

When reviewing the provided information-which was a little lacking- I came to the conclusion that the cause of the death was underinvestigated

What do you mean?

Considering the drowning occurred during a physically intense land and underwater challenge, there were many factors including overexertion and dehydration that were not properly investigated

What indicators did you observe that support overexertion as a possible cause of the drowning?

There were several indicators, the presence of calcium oxalate within the kidneys as well as evidence of Mr Armstrong coughing and displaying respiratory problems

Lets take those one at a time, can you explain what calcium oxalate is?

Calcium Oxalate is a common mineral compound, which is crucial in both biology and medicine. It is a salt of oxalic acid which just means the acid has neutralized and turned into a solid after grabbing onto some calcium. It’s important to note that calcium oxalate is naturally occurring.

When would calcium oxalate appear naturally?

In clinical practice, trace amounts of calcium oxalate crystals are regularly seen in the urine of patients, due to the plethora of foods that are high in oxalate. It is also found in patients with mild dehydration.

How do exertion and dehydration contribute to calcium oxalate crystal formation?

Take myself for example, for a sports medicine physician I am awfully out of shape. So, after a short 2 on 2 basketball session with my kids, I find myself becoming lightheaded. This is because become dehydrated and calcium oxalate crystals start forming in my kidneys. The same could have been the case for Mr Armstrong

If someone is experiencing that level of exertion and dehydration, what symptoms would you expect to see?

Going back to my prior example of dehydration, they would also feel dryness in their throat, and as a result they are going to be a lot more prone to coughing and breathing problems.

What other effects can overexertion have on a person?

a person would often gradually decline in performance. After strenuous activity, people aren’t as sharp as they were before, their hand-eye coordination is off, and their reactions become slower

Did Mr. Armstrong exhibit these signs?

Yes, in the dive footage, you can see Mr Armstrong putting on the mask, taking a breath in and then coughing, as well as a gradual decline in his swimming. This is highly indicative of overexertion

Why would he have been overexerted?

The most likely source of overexertion was the obstacle course Mr. Armstrong completed immediately before the dive. The course was lengthy, physically demanding, and filled with extremely complex obstacles.For better illustration, I brought a blown up version of what the course required.

Could you walk us through how the obstacle course begins?

The contestants start at the line with a weighted backpack. Then the signal goes off,  and they begin the first obstacle, the balance beam, here they must carefully cross it without falling.

What are the next obstacles they face?

After the balance beam, they move to climb a rope wall while still carrying the weight, then move on to the balance posts, which are even harder because there’s less surface area to stay stable.

Is that the end of the course?

Not quite. They must crawl through a mud pit and then tackle another set of rope walls, balance beams, and another mud pit. It’s much harder and more draining than it looks in training videos.

What happens after that?

No, that was only half of it .After doing all that, contestants must then sprint directly towards the diving challenge.

What can you tell us about the dive challenge?

There’s no break and no time to take a breather because everyone is trying to win. The contestants put on their diving mask and race into the water to try to retrieve a series of rings attached to anchors. There are five anchors in total, and each ring is attached to it with a rope the contestants must untie.

Earlier, you said that you reviewed the footage of Mr. Armstrong doing that challenge. What does the footage tell us about how he was doing?

Halfway into the footage we see him rip off his diving mask. Which raises the questions of the marks we saw on his face.

What could have caused those marks on his face?

There are two theories on the cause of the marks of the face. The first falls under chemical burns and the other is supported by the video footage of Mr Armstrong violently ripping off his mask

Were you able to come to a definitive conclusion as to the cause of death?

No I couldn’t. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough evidence to suggest any definitive cause of death.

What cause of death seemed more likely, given the circumstances?

Due to the lack of evidence, I cannot say that one cause is more likely than the other. However, the evidence does not support the idea that Mr. Armstrong’s death was caused by inhalation of oxalic acid. Overexertion, on the other hand, remains a plausible contributing factor.