The death of 19-year-old Chicago teen Kenneka Jenkins has been ruled an accident by the Cook County medical examiner's office, the Chicago Tribune reports. Jenkins was found dead in a walk-in freezer at the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel & Conference Center in Rosemont on September 10.
The office noted that Jenkins' death was caused by hypothermia and that alcohol and the use of a drug that mitigates migraines and epilepsy were "significant contributing factors."
Jenkins was attending a party at the hotel when she reportedly exited the room, leaving her car keys and phone. After a search, Jenkins' friends contacted the teen's family.
Hours later, Jenkins' body was found in a walk-in freezer. Her mother, Teresa Martin, suspected foul play and was not convinced of the recounting of the events of the night that the teen's friends gave. Surveillance video of Jenkins wandering the hotel was also released.
The story subsequently went viral, with many people on social media also suspecting that Jenkins was murdered. The Cook County medical examiner's office's examination of Jenkins' body has determined that she was not murdered and that the death was an accident.
