Springfield mayor Davlin's death ruled suicide

St. Louis Public Radio

Published Jan. 20, 2011 at 1:02 p.m. CST

Timothy Davlin, former mayor of Illinois' capitol city, Springfield, was found dead in his home after a 911 call to police on Dec. 14, 2010. The death has been ruled a suicide. (UPI/City of Springfield, Ill.)

Springfield Mayor Timothy Davlin's death has been ruled a suicide.

A Sangamon County inquest Thursday determined the 53-year-old Democrat died of a close-contact bullet wound to the heart in a vehicle parked at his home Dec. 14.

Investigators say they found no note from Davlin. They say there were no signs of foul play and no drugs or alcohol in his body.

Davlin apparently called 911 from a cordless landline phone in his car but hung up.

He died the morning he was to show up at a court hearing to give a financial accounting for an estate he was handling. The IRS also says he owed $90,000 in back taxes.

The two-term mayor had recently announced he would not seek re-election.

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