Crime & Safety
Police Say Dead Woman Murdered; Cause of Death Kept Secret
The victim, whose body was discovered Thursday night near Richards Street and 2nd Avenue, was identified as Beatrice Orsborne by the Will County coroner.
The woman found between houses along Richards Street Thursday night was murdered, Joliet Police Lt. Brian Dupuis said Friday.
The victim is Beatrice Orsborne, 47, of Joliet, who was identified through her fingerprints. An autopsy conducted Friday determined her cause of death was a homicide, but no specific details were released beyond that by the Will County Coroner's Office.
Coroner Pat O'Neil said those details are integral to the case, which is why they're not being announced publicly.
"That's going to be a very important part of the police investigation," he said.
Orsborne's body was discovered by a passerby at about 5 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of Richards Street, near 2nd Avenue, and she was officially declared dead by the coroner at 6:45 p.m.
Dupuis said investigators are interviewing friends and family members to determine who might have last spoken to Orsborne and what her activities were prior to her death. Dupuis would release no details on when she died or if her body was moved after her death.
He did, however, confirm that she was not sexually assaulted and dismissed as incorrect rumors that she had been outside for a long period of time before her body was discovered.
The results of toxicology tests will be available in a few weeks, and until then Dupuis would not speculate on whether drugs or alcohol might have been involved.
Orsborne's criminal past -- in which her name was also spelled Orsborn -- shows she was arrested in 2011 on a possession of a controlled substance charge and in 2010 for driving under the influence of alcohol.
She was arrested for carrying open alcohol in a vehicle in 2008 and more than two dozen times on city ordinance violations for possessing alcohol on public property, disorderly conduct and trespassing, Will County circuit court records show.
Police ask that if anyone has information on the case to call the investigations unit at 815-724-3020 or Will County Crimestoppers at 800-323-6734.
Coroner Pat O'Neil said those details are integral to the case, which is why they're not being announced publicly.
"That's going to be a very important part of the police investigation," he said.
Orsborne's body was discovered by a passerby at about 5 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of Richards Street, near 2nd Avenue, and she was officially declared dead by the coroner at 6:45 p.m.
Dupuis said investigators are interviewing friends and family members to determine who might have last spoken to Orsborne and what her activities were prior to her death. Dupuis would release no details on when she died or if her body was moved after her death.
He did, however, confirm that she was not sexually assaulted and dismissed as incorrect rumors that she had been outside for a long period of time before her body was discovered.
The results of toxicology tests will be available in a few weeks, and until then Dupuis would not speculate on whether drugs or alcohol might have been involved.
Orsborne's criminal past -- in which her name was also spelled Orsborn -- shows she was arrested in 2011 on a possession of a controlled substance charge and in 2010 for driving under the influence of alcohol.
She was arrested for carrying open alcohol in a vehicle in 2008 and more than two dozen times on city ordinance violations for possessing alcohol on public property, disorderly conduct and trespassing, Will County circuit court records show.
Police ask that if anyone has information on the case to call the investigations unit at 815-724-3020 or Will County Crimestoppers at 800-323-6734.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here
