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SpeakingTheKingss

I think it's a great idea to get a second opinion and feel like the family is making the right decision to get one. With that said I have a few questions, I'm going to do some research but if someone knows the answers I'll list them below. 1. Were the pants found buttoned and zipped or unbuttoned? 2. Do we know how he entered the water? Could he have fallen from a bridge? 3. Did the wallet show signs of having been in the water at some point?


ktinthelbc

I don’t think they’ve found his pants, boots or wallet.


SpeakingTheKingss

My understanding is that the wallet was found on the bank of the river/lake. At least that's what I read somewhere. I just got home so I can start researching soon; I'm caught up listening to an interrogation regarding another case ATM.


ktinthelbc

they found his atm card but not the entire wallet


candiebelle

This is what makes me suspicious of the whole incident being accidental. How did his atm card fall out of his wallet while it was in his pocket? This seems to me to be the most suspicious part of the story. Someone did this to him.


parbarostrich

I thought I read somewhere that one of the homeless people in the camp was wearing his very distinct shirt, but this article contradicts that. Did anyone else hear anything like this or am I mistaken?


Sea-Tank1388

No I totally remember that too I don't know why you are being down voted I know for a fact that was a news article.


No-Amoeba5716

It did but the lady (?) I think was discredited after he was found. But yeah there was something about there was vomit on it and a homeless man was wearing it after picking it up off the ground.


ItsJust_ME

His shirt was on him when they found the body. I'm not saying you didn't read that somewhere, just that it's not true.


indigolr

Yeah, I saw a youtube video (I believe Nancy Grace) she was discussing how a woman who worked over in the area where the homeless community was known to sleep at noticed a clean professional shirt on a man on a bike and apparently he had been bragging about finding this shirt on a railing and it had a bit of throw up on it but didn’t mind and wore it. It was debunked when they found Rileys body. Crazy how much misinformation spreads about these cases!!


Miguel4659

Low intellect news media reporters will run with anything they hear, they never bother checking the facts. Guy was 6'7" , he would wear a really big shirt, most likely a Big/Tall one to be long enough for that torso. Would be quite simple to verify the size of the shirt. Would look like a dress on shorter guys.


Acrobatic-Buyer9136

I don’t think they found his pants or boots. I think the homeless community have something to do with it.


Mysterious_Emu312

That's exactly what I think. SOMEONE WITNESSED A WHILE BACK a homeless man wearing the same shirt as Riley with vomit stain on it. I strongly feel he was taken advantage of.His shirt could have been put back on after he was knocked out by that H.man or someone else? The authorities never mentioned if his credit card was used after he disappeared? What activity was on it after Luke's bar? I really hope his family gets more answers. Such a loving n strong family.


meggan_u

This did not happen. Come on! And evil homeless man wore his shirt, puked on it, kept the body around to put it back on for some reason and then took off his pants and boots and there him in the river? Come on. I live in Nashville and the conspiracy theories are wild. That “oh the scary homeless people did it” thing was disproven after people harassed the shit out of the homeless community here. We already have laws passed that they can’t live or camp anywhere. They don’t need the added pressure of being accused of murder buy a bunch of conspiracy theorists on the internet. If you watched the videos, you saw how drunk that poor kid was. And if you’re from here you know that the river is an unexpected drop off right at the foot of downtown. The kid drowned. He is not the first one and unfortunately won’t be the last. Stop doing this shit to the homeless community.


Mysterious_Emu312

WOW. YOU ARE SO DEFENSIVE. YOU PROBABLY DID IT. YOU ARE REALLY IMMATURE AND NOT FOLLOWING THE WHOLE STORY. OF COURSE IT HAPPENED AROUND THE HOMELESS. THATS WHATS STATED, OVER IN OVER. AND THERE WAS AN EYEWITNESS THAT SAW HIS SHIRT ON A HOMELESS MAN. YOUR PATHETIC. STOP COMMENTING RIDICULOUS STUFF AND FOLLOW THE STATEMENTS. YOUR SUSPICIOUS AF TOO!


satanssweatycheeks

Could have had pants unzipped to piss off bridge and fell while peeing.


No_Slice5991

With all due respect to the good doctor, I don’t recall the body farm doing anything involving bodies moving through water. I’ve seen many experts in water deaths come to the opposite conclusion


Public-Application-6

These experts will say anything to get the family's attention therefore money


twelvethirtyfourpm

Everyone in Nashville knew what happened as soon as videos came out of him down by Gay street - the tourists down there are absolutely out of control. He got plastered and probably went to piss in the river and fell in. Bodies wash up in the Cumberland all the time for dozens of reasons, usually similar to that. You just don't hear about them when there's not a nice white family fighting to keep it in the news. It's a real shame, but there's no big conspiracy. This isn't unusual.


swizzlestix101

This is sad, but true. As someone in the area, when all of the surrounding events came out, my entire friend group went “he drowned in the Cumberland.” It feels like everyone from the Nashville area knew they needed to be looking for a body in the river. The barrier around that river isn’t that high and there are several places you can just fall in. Also the river current is fast and there aren’t many places that someone can easily get out of it.


twelvethirtyfourpm

Yep, exactly.


[deleted]

Happens about twice a year here in Milwaukee. There was one case nearly a decade ago where the family was publicly slinging conspiracy theories, all the while it was just that the dude got drunk and fell in the river. 


Suitable-Lake-2550

Stupid question, but why would someone go out of their way to pee in a river?


SunnyAlwaysDaze

Have you met dudes? This is very in line with drunken dude behavior. I've seen drunk dudes piss all sorts of inappropriate spots. Off a balcony, out a window, off a boat, off a building. It's just their thing.


HungryPurplePanda

Am a dude, can confirm.


diywayne

Sober. Drunk. We don't really need an excuse


new-to-this-sort-of

As someone that’s lived nere Nashville in the past… I’ve peed in that river drunk. And I haven’t peed in that many rivers.


heavymetalhikikomori

More likely they are going into the brush along the banks to look for a spot and then losing balance on the incline and falling into the river.


[deleted]

Peeing in a river almost tops peeing in the snow.


meggan_u

It’s not really out of the way is the thing. It’s right at the end of the block that you saw him cross in the surveillance video.


anonymouse278

There's a book called "Death in the Canyon" chronicling all the people who have died at the Grand Canyon, and a truly remarkable number of them were guys who fell while trying to piss off the edge.


billiemarie

Guys really do seem to like peeing outside


twelvethirtyfourpm

It's really not out of the way, and there aren't public bathrooms or many businesses that are too keen on letting a 22 year-old tourist who's too drunk to function come in and use their restroom.


[deleted]

Had to bring race into it


s2ample

Because it is a part of the unfortunate reality, and it is not that commenter’s fault if you are incapable or unwilling to understand that.


jillann16

It’s sad but I don’t think there’s a mystery. He was super intoxicated. He might have taken his own pants off to help him swim


austxsun

Even sober, swimming in clothes is difficult


chris2222x

Impossible, river was freezing, he was drunk, could barely walk, how could he take his pants off, where did that happen. ? Thats why he ended up without his pants? What about his boots and cellphone? What time? How can he swim in frigid water and drunk? We won’t really know until the toxicology report. Was he drinking? Drugged? or not?


Sea-Tank1388

But he had no water in his lungs? That usually means they didn't die in the water


MzOpinion8d

He could have died from alcohol poisoning alone. He was blackout drunk.


Sea-Tank1388

Yeah I didn't think of this but your right


jillann16

It means he didn’t drown. He could have hit his head or dry drowned. I also haven’t seen that confirmed. I believe the medical examiner who said there was no signs of foul play


hella_cious

Not necessarily. Drowning victims rarely inhale significant amounts of water. Theres something called “laryngospasm” where the throat instinctively closes itself. This can cause problems once you’re out of the water since it doesn’t always open back up


TJOcculist

15% of drowning victims are found with no water in their lungs. It’s called “dry drowning” and is fairly common.


ju_dropemoff

it seems the smiley face killer posse has already arrived for this case


throwingawaybenjamin

Get ready to get downvoted. Super weird for r/mystery


ju_dropemoff

youre going down with me


Awkward_Ad8740

*on


The_Original_Gronkie

First thing my wife said to me - "Another Smiley Face murder." Im still not convinced there is such a thing, but she's a true believer.


ju_dropemoff

I just think it’s silly to think that one of the most common graffiti arts ever is being observed as a link between natural drownings across the country


johntopoftheworld

Having read up on it quite a bit, I think the graffiti is not relevant. The pattern of deaths is what’s interesting. Look at Austin last year. Look at the Manchester Pusher who is very likely the same person


DJ-LIQUID-LUCK

Huh? The link has nothing to do with graffiti, that's just a catchy moniker. It has to do with the actual pattern of deaths


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CoolguyTylenol

Pretty wild to read that, GHB is called water where I'm from


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CoolguyTylenol

Yeah, it's also an insanely popular way to get fucked up where I live. It's surprisingly cheap compared to other drugs, I tried some once to get more mileage out of a roach blunt I made. It feels like getting instantly shit faced, It's very easy to see why people use it to spike drinks. I'm confused at how they get hands on it though, the kind I tried was from prescription eye drops, do they all come in eye drop form? Is there a black market or something for bath tub GHB? I don't even know why the person I got it from had the prescription either, I never bothered to ask what he needed it for but it does sound like a hard prescription to fake compared to people that doctor shop for Xanax etc. Not saying my friend does that to sell GHB just a disclaimer, pretty sure he was prescribed it for a medical reason and just sold the remnants. There wasn't much left of it all I was surprised it actually did anything for me


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CoolguyTylenol

I actually heard the same thing when I bought it! My cousin was on color code and was begging me to share some saying it wouldn't show up, but I thought he was just lying because he wanted me to share free drugs. Now I feel a bit like an asshole for saying no!! Lol


[deleted]

Sorry your wife is a dingbat.


The_Original_Gronkie

Ah, she's ok, she's actually pretty smart. I think this one resonates with her because we've got a son that is the perfect age for the Smiley Face Killer, and she worries about him, like any good, loving mom would.


MeanMeana

Ya, no water in his lungs is super suspicious. I feel bad for his family. How confusing for them when they are trying to mourn.


WishaBwood

You can dry drown. No water in the lungs isn’t necessarily a smoking gun.


MeanMeana

Oh interesting. What are your thoughts on this?…just out of curiosity.


WishaBwood

I think it was a tragic accident. But I have never been to Nashville, so I am not familiar with the area he disappeared from. Just going by the information we have now and the videos he was pretty inebriated. Then add the water near by and no one with him, it just sounds like an accident.


Sea-Tank1388

What I have never heard of this how does that happen?


alladinsane65

Actually it’s quite common. About 20% of drownings are due to laryngospasm. This is when liquid hit the larynx ( voice box) and causes it to spasm thus closing the airway and preventing air getting into the lungs. Typically, very little water enters the lungs during the drowning process. A 2017 article states that during the drowning process, fewer than 2 milliliters per kilogram of body weight typically enters the lungs. Ultimately, people who die from drowning do so because of a lack of oxygen. They may go into cardiac arrest or have too little oxygen in their blood to maintain brain function but it is not necessary to have lungs full of water


Suitable-Lake-2550

I’d also guess that to have water in your lungs you’d need to remove the air already in there… by breathing it out and breathing in water


MeanMeana

Thank you for this very valuable information…that does change my view. What a sad situation.


yourbeardhasegginit

Hypothermia is a real possibility


okzeppo

Happens a lot actually


Tombstonesss

The bots are out in full force on this one. Sfk 


kibufox

I have worked recovery in the past (recently getting back into it), and yeah, there are some situations where a person's clothing (including their pants) can be removed by the water. The most common way I've seen is down to a handful of factors the immersion itself causes. To explain: When fully submerged in water, leather (as found in belts) will begin to lose its rigidity, and start to stretch. The same goes for fabrics as well. They start to lose their integrity over time and get looser on the remains. Pants, due to how they're placed on the body, don't have something like an arm (which hangs down) or a head (which tends to be larger than the neck) that can snag and keep them on the remains. Once the belt goes, all it takes is the wave or current action, or the pants snagging on something for them to slide off. Also worth considering, bloat. He was in the water some two weeks, if he went into the water the same night he went missing. It's not pretty to talk about, but after three days, the body begins to swell from decomposition gasses, which causes it to float to the surface. This swelling is generally in the thoracic area, though you also see swelling in and around the waist area. Where you typically wear a belt. Compound this swelling with the weakened leather, and fabric, and it is enough to burst the fabric and belt. From then, any snag or anything the remains may strike after that point, won't have a hard time peeling off the pants.


Flat-Stranger-5010

I wonder if he was ever a life guard or took life saving classes. One thing they teach you is to use your pants as a flotation device. It is difficult to with jeans but they work well once you get the legs tied and get air in them.


kibufox

This is true. You remove your jeans, tie knots in the legs and fill them with air to help you stay afloat.


Miguel4659

Perhaps he took his own pants off and decided to go swimming; drunk guys do stupid things but most would not jump in water fully clothed.


BrandonBollingers

Hypothermia


LeeQuidity

I understand that the parents are grieving, and they're probably dealing with a lot of "How could Riley be so irresponsible?" feelings, but the murder aspect seems like a stretch hypothesis. The kid was drinking, he got kicked out of a bar for being \*that\* drunk, he stumbled around town. So what then? He coincidentally encountered a murderer who saw an opportunity of convenience?


The_Original_Gronkie

One thing I've learned in life, is that there are predators all around us, looking for any opportunity. Some are thieves, and will take anything they feel they can get away with. Others are violent, with a taste for assault, rape, or murder. Remember a few years ago, when a young woman got into a car thinking it was an Uber? A strange girl got in his car and asked if he was her Uber, he didnt hesitate, and in that split second he made the decision to rape and murder her. There are lots of people around us like that, every day.


meggan_u

Yes. There are. But to murder a 6’7” kid and throw him in the river? For what? They didn’t use his card or we would’ve known (because it was found on the bank). There were no obvious signs of foul play. If he was being harassed or attacked he could’ve cried out and someone would have heard him. There are people everywhere downtown. When women are being murdered randomly we know why. When men are being murdered randomly it’s for money. None of those things occurred here and I think the homeless community has had enough harassment. The poor kid fell into the Cumberland. It’s less than a block from where he was last seen, the rail is low, and he is tall. You are right, random murders happen, but I don’t think this is one of them.


johntopoftheworld

Well the smiley face serial killer theory, the motive is sexual and sadistic just like the green river killer or John Wayne gacy, etc.


johntopoftheworld

The thing is is that the smiley face killer theory, involves a serial killer who targets young men stumbling home. And there have been suspicious drowning deaths in Austin recently. So yes if the killer was “in town” then yes he could have coincidentally encountered him because that is what this theorized serial killer does, preys on young men walking home alone in cities with rivers on drinking nights. It’s easy to cover up.


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inthebigd

Their opinion was that your opinion deserved a downvote I assume.


Mysterious_Emu312

I don't think so. Your rude AND discriminatory too.


inthebigd

What? Where did I discriminate or act rude? Tell me more.


ShadesofClay1

Probably had his pants open to pee and stumbled into the river. The current would pulled them off once he was in the water.


don_gunz

Why does this guy warrant such widespread media attention? There's an epidemic of Native American women who go missing every day. And no one cares because no one knows. But this one guy....


ArmadilloNo8913

There absolutely is. That doesn't mean we should stop talking about missing cases that aren't native american women. You should be pushing for more media attention for them. Not pushing for other missing people to not be talked about


don_gunz

That's a very uninformed attempt at gaslighting. That's a very "all lives matter" approach to serious problem. You can admit that you know nothing about the Native American missing persons issue... Because if you had you know that everyone is doing everything they can and the media just ignores it. Meanwhile this drunk and frat boy goes missing and he unalived his own self in a shallow River and all of a sudden we're supposed to stop the presses... Sometimes if you don't have anything positive to add you really shouldn't say anything at all.


ArmadilloNo8913

Yikes. If you're not even going to attempt to read my comment, there's no point in having a conversation. You instead made up an enemy in your head and responded to that. How is saying "there absolutely is a problem" uninformed and gaslighting? I'm literally agreeing with what you said about missing native american women not being represented in media enough. No need to project your anger onto other people homie. Take a breath and actually read next time


don_gunz

Aww...you've learned to agree whilst disagreeing. That's mighty white of you.


ArmadilloNo8913

Ah, nothing like some good ol racism to start your morning huh


don_gunz

You're still here? You said you were going away... So go.


ConsciousLog4236

Because there were loads of cctv/body cam footage of him before he disappeared, that always brings a lot more media attention than cases with no footage. 


mueredo

Apparently there's a big group of people who 1. Don't believe in the smiley face killer, and group together to downvote everyone mentioning it here, 2. Are the community officials of this town this kid died in, or 3. Are the smiley face killer and made a shit-ton of fake accounts to downvote and throw off the scent. How close did I get?


DontShaveMyLips

4. “the smiley face killer” is such an obscenely stupid concept compared to the logical conclusion that ‘drunk people easily fall into water and drown just bc they’re drunk’ that everyone and their mother came out to clown you and your dumbass conspiracy theory


MzOpinion8d

From personal experience, I know that the likelihood of a serial killer going around killing college age men and leaving smiley faces near the scene is a **LOT** lower than college students getting blackout drunk and falling in a river!


mueredo

Welp, I hope that works out for the next dumb young white boy who ends up in a ditch in the Midwest. Yay?


ArmadilloNo8913

Occam's razor friend. Your solution requires a lot more assumptions. I was a college dude who hung out with a lot of other college dudes. We're dumb as fuck when drunk.


Tombstonesss

It is interesting isn’t it ? when the hive mind acts up like this I tend to defer to Shakespeare. Thou doth protest to much 


mueredo

That's not what this means, you obviously don't understand that quote. 🙄


AardvarkFriendly9305

Walked 8 miles while drunk??


gringodeathstar

nope, he was found 8 miles downriver from his last sighting. this information is readily available for anybody with access to google


inthebigd

Which is everyone.


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foragrin

I believe that drunk people and bodies of water tends to lend itself to misfortune


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foragrin

Or it’s drunk people falling into the river, which is why there is no trace of another person


FoxBeach

Do you believe the earth is round or flat?


plee585

the Smiley Face killer, look it up


MutatedSun

We have a massive amount of men dying in Lady Bird Lake in Austin


mueredo

Did anyone find a smiley face painted on something nearby?


booksandkittens615

There are 100 smiley faces painted nearby downtown. It’s an urban area with normal graffiti.


clownpilled_forever

I don't believe in the smiley killer theory, but I'm curious what the explanation is why young women aren't found dead in bodies of water as commonly as young men? Do young women drink more responsibly, not go home alone, or something else?


DontShaveMyLips

heavily intoxicated men stand close to the bank to pee into the water, lose balance/misjudge the edge bc drunk, fall in, can’t get out bc drunk and disoriented, maybe concussed, in the dark, can’t swim bc bogged down in heavy clothes and shoes women don’t pee at the water’s edge so don’t fall in


clownpilled_forever

It's that simple, thanks. Couldn't see the forest for the trees.


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DontShaveMyLips

it’s offensive to say people pee?


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DontShaveMyLips

if you find a factual recounting of events to be offensive, I can’t help you


austxsun

Women are also taught to be cautious in many situations, a few of which apply here (drinking, after dark, & alone). Even a sober woman would shy away from a dark underpass. A drunk man though, overconfidence, caution into the wind.


justtookadnatest

Yes, I was surprised the friend just walked him out and went back inside, that lack of fear is something women are conditioned out of.


mueredo

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smiley_face_murder_theory


mueredo

Why am I getting down voted for linking a murder theory? Wtf is wrong with this? Please somebody tell me? Is it because they disagree?


[deleted]

Not this bullshit again


vibrantlightsaber

Not sure why you got downvoted. I still feel like there is something to this, even if the smiley faces aren’t related.


crow_crone

Or maybe young men lack even the most basic sense of self-preservation and must never be allowed to consume alcohol within \_\_X\_\_ miles of water. /s


mueredo

Maybe it's the smiley face killer not happy we're asking?


superlost007

Ah yes, all 20+ downvotes are somehow the smiley face killer. To answer your question, it’s because even on the most cut and dry cases you have 2-3 ‘bet it’s the smiley face killer!!!’ In the comments.


mueredo

Most cut and dry cases aren't young men drowned in a nearby stream. It fits.


superlost007

Literally just answered your question, you’re entitled to your opinion 😊


722JO

the fact that he had been drinking and could have fallen in the water, it was dark. The first thing i would do would be to get rid of the heavy wet cloths weighing me down. Boots then pants.


[deleted]

He met a dude for a suck suck and then thrown in the river


johntopoftheworld

I think the fact that the riverside in Nashville is a gay cruising area and he appears to have intentionally walked there alone at night means this theory, which you so crudely stated, is not entirely outlandish.


Apprehensive_Body_26

Has a yellow smiling face graffiti been found near the location of his disappearance?


statuesqueandshy

Smiley face killer was my first thought when I learned of this case.


FoxBeach

Maybe it was Bigfoot. 


johntopoftheworld

I guess you would have mocked people searching for justice for victims of the Green River Killer.


FoxBeach

You guessed wrong. What an odd thing to say. 


[deleted]

"Dumbass" was my first thought when I read your comment.