Epstein autopsy doctor explains hesitation to declare his death a suicide

A newly released transcript reveals new details about the autopsy conducted after Jeffrey Epstein's death and the decision to declare he had killed himself.

The convicted sex offender was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell Aug. 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, and Business Insider reported new details about the findings by Kristin Roman, who conducted an autopsy the following day for the New York City medical examiner's office, and Michael Baden, a forensic pathologist hired as an observer by Epstein's estate and brother Mark Epstein.

"After examining Jeffrey Epstein's corpse, Baden was convinced he died by homicide," Insider reported. "Roman was less sure. On Epstein's death certificate, she did not check the boxes for 'homicide' or 'suicide' and instead checked the box for "pending studies."

Roman's boss Barbara Sampson, the chief medical examiner of New York City, ruled five days later that Epstein had died by suicide after what she described as a "careful review of all investigative information." Roman's initial hesitation, combined with Baden's conclusion, has fueled conspiracy theories for years.

"The world did not learn that Roman agreed with her office's findings until nearly four years later, when the Justice Department inspector general's office released its report into Epstein's death," Insider reported. "Even then, the reasoning behind her ruling — and the delay — was not made clear. Until now."

A transcript of that interview was released by the DOJ under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and it shows Roman told investigators that she was just "being thorough" by waiting to formally declare Epstein's death was a suicide.

"If he had been a less high-profile person who there weren't people wanting to kill, I would have probably called it a hanging on the day of autopsy," Roman said.

Roman told DOJ investigators that she believed fractures to the hyoid bone and thyroid cartilage were consistent with hanging and not strangulation, but Baden disagreed then and continues to disagree now, saying he has never seen three fractures in a suicidal hanging in his decades of serving as a medical examiner.

"That doesn't mean it can never happen, but it sure as hell is very rare if it happens," Baden said.

Roman also said she was "not as convinced as I would like to be" about which noose caused his death, but she said that did not affect her conclusion.

"Either one of these [nooses shown in photographs], in terms of its shape, could have caused the markings on Mr. Epstein," Roman said. "But this one, this second one that you're showing me that was never brought to me, looks like a more likely candidate."

Roman and Sampson did not respond to Business Insider's requests for comment, but Mark Epstein told the publication he still doubts their conclusion and believes his brother was murdered.

"They're either lying, they're incompetent, or they're wrong," Mark Epstein said.