Beyond A Watery Grave
Posted on July 9, 2012 Written By: iadminlaw
Natalie Wood captivated audiences on the big screen. Now, nearly 31 years after her untimely death, Wood continues to captivate audiences as authorities try to explain the circumstances surrounding her drowning.
Authorities are continuing their reexamination of her 1981 death, but have not formed any solid conclusions about what happened.
English: Publicity still photo portrait of Natalie Wood (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The department surprised many by reopening the case last year, two weeks before the 30th anniversary of Wood’s death. Some questioned the timing of the new probe — it coincided with a “48 Hours Mystery” television segment on the case, produced in partnership with Vanity Fair magazine. But officials said several sources had come forward to provide more information about what happened that night.
The probe continues even though detectives don’t have enough information to classify the case as an accident or something else.
Last year, detectives interviewed many of those involved in the case. They also traveled to Hawaii to inspect the yacht Wood and others were aboard. It’s unclear what more recent work has been done on the case.
Chief Coroner Craig Harvey said in a statement that a security hold had been placed on the Wood case, per a request from the Sheriff’s Department.
Wood, 43, was on a yacht off Catalina Island on the evening of November 28, 1981 with her husband, actor Robert Wagner, and “Brainstorm” costar Christopher Walken when she somehow got into the water and died.
Wagner and Walken told officials they had an argument that evening but eventually calmed down. When Wagner went to bed, Wood wasn’t there. He thought his wife had taken off on a small inflatable boat by herself, as she had done before.
But after 10 to 15 minutes passed without her returning, Wagner went to look for her aboard a small cruiser. When he couldn’t find her, he contacted the Harbor Patrol. Authorities discovered Wood’s body about 8 a.m. the next day, about a mile away from the yacht. The dinghy was found beached nearby.
Officials at the time ruled her death an accident, but there has been much speculation ever since over whether there was more to the story. After the new investigation began, the captain of the boat, Dennis Davern, gave several television interviews expressing skepticism about the original investigation and saying he believed that Wood was a victim of foul play.
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