1966 death of Doris Duke employee an accident, review finds

The city manager in Newport, Rhode Island, is standing by the city police department's review of the 1966 death of an employee of wealthy heiress Doris Duke that found — like the original investigation — it was all an accident.

Police opened the review into the death of Eduardo Tirella in July after a witness who had never before talked to police came forward after reading the book “Homicide at Rough Point," by Peter Lance. The author and journalist who grew up in Newport suggested Duke, who died in 1993, acted with intent when she struck Tirella with a car at her mansion.

That witness, Bob Walker, 68, was a 13-year-old paperboy at the time who was first upon the scene, and his account differed from official versions of what happened.

But while Detective Jacque Wuest, who conducted the review, found Walker to be “credible," she concluded in a statement last week: "There is no new evidence that would change the previous conclusion in this matter, nor is there any new evidence that warrants further review.”

The statement Tuesday from the office of City Manager Joseph Nicholson Jr. stood by the police, saying “at this time we cannot ascribe any definitive motive or intent to Ms. Duke."

“To that end, it would be imprudent to either reclassify this incident or to offer any further commentary beyond our official opinion. Accordingly, as we have previously articulated, it remains the opinion of the Newport Police Department that there is not sufficient evidence to draw any firm conclusions as to the motivations of Ms. Duke," the statement said.

Lance, in a telephone interview Tuesday, called the findings of the police review “absurd."

In a statement, he said that as the author of several books critical of the FBI on counterterrorism and organized crime, “I have never seen...