Falls caused man's death

SANDPOINT — An elderly Oklahoma man with dementia might have been fatally injured from repeated falls before he wandered from a home north of Priest River last month and was later found dead.

Willard Craig Jensen died of traumatic brain injuries and his death has been ruled accidental, according to a Bonner County coroner’s report obtained via Idaho’s public records law.

Coroner Kitt Rose said a sheriff’s investigation indicated that Jensen had fallen at least three times in three days leading up to his disappearance. Jensen likely fell after he wandered from the home, but Rose said it could not be determined exactly which falls led to his death.

“I’m sure he probably did take some falls when he left, but it’s really hard to say which ones caused it,” Rose said on Wednesday.

Jensen, 80, was found dead on June 22, after a day-long air and ground search. He was found about a half-mile from a residence he was staying at in the 6100 block of East River Road.

Jensen was in Idaho because his caregiver’s brother was ill, the coroner’s report said.

Jensen’s doctor in Bristow, Okla., confirmed that Jensen had dementia and  Sundowner’s syndrome, an affliction which causes Alzheimer’s disease sufferers further confusion after sunset. Jensen had reportedly become increasingly aggressive and combative in the months preceding his death.

Rose also said Jensen had a history of falling, although she said the older falls did not factor into his death.

“Those were quite some time ago,” she said.

Jensen died sometime between 6:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. on the day of his disappearance, the coroner’s report said. Bilateral subdural and subarachnoid hemorrhaging from blunt force trauma to the head are listed as the cause of death.

A helicopter from the U.S. Air Force’s 36th Rescue Flight spotted Jensen’s body in a muddy, forested area. Ground searchers from Priest Lake Search & Rescue said Jensen was fully clothed when he was found, but was not wearing any shoes.