KGPE-TV CHANNEL 47 NEWS, FRESNO, CA  July 30, 2000

MELANIE KIM (NEWS ANCHOR)-  Now an update on a story we told you about earlier this month, imagine if someone you loved died suddenly and doctors couldn't tell you why.  This actually happened to the family of a Clovis homemaker, but her family hopes a medical expert they've hired might provide some pieces to this puzzling death, and you might be able to help them do that.  

MEG DALITION- Well Linda was a 37 year-old healthy mother of four, there was no history of family heart disease or any other sort of disease.  She was in good health, and as many of the medical experts that we have consulted, have told us, a 37 year-old healthy woman does not just die for no apparent reason.

MELANIE KIM-When Linda Dalition Adanalian of Clovis died suddenly this February, the Fresno County Coroner's office performed an autopsy but could not determine why she died.  She was buried--even though so many questions remained. 

MEG DALITION- She has four beautiful healthy children--they need to know why their mother was taken from them.  And we need to know why our sister and daughter was taken from us.

MELANIE KIM- Which is why Linda's sister Meg and her family asked a forensic pathologist from the world renowned Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to help them.

ERIC A. PFEIFER, M.D.- That I've been able to ascertain from reading her medical record.

MELANIE KIM-Doctor Eric Pfeifer is performing tests on some additional tissue samples.  They were taken after the Coroner's office exhumed Linda's body from this Fresno cemetery-four months after she was buried.  I asked Doctor Pfeifer how common it is for a healthy young woman to die suddenly like Linda did without an apparent cause. 

ERIC A. PFEIFER, M.D.- It does happen but it is uncommon; it is uncommon for it to be attributed to a natural disease.  It is not to say it isn't because it could very well be a natural cause umm but again given the features of this case the information I've gotten from the doctors and from reading her case file,  I think that it would be prudent to rule out a toxicology death,--A Poison Death.

MELANIE KIM- Doctor Pfeifer tells me poisons can be very difficult to detect,  unless they look for that specific poison.  That's why Doctor Pfeifer says Quote " I'm hopeful news coverage will prompt information from the public that may shed light on the mysterious death...that may prove helpful to my investigation."

MEG DALITION- We certainly pray and hope that medical tests do reveal something.  I know that as far as my family is concerned we will leave no stone unturned in order to find out what happened to our Linda.

MELANIE KIM- Now the results of Doctor Pfeifer's tests may take up to several months, he adds 1-3% of deaths do go classified as undetermined.  If you think you might have any information for Doctor Pfeifer on this case call him at the Mayo clinic.  The number there is 1 (507) 284-1800 and we'll have it again for you later in this news cast.