In Autopsy Report, Medical Examiner Says Kayaker Was Victim of ‘Homicide’

The medical examiner’s conclusion is clear: Vincent Viafore, who the police say was killed by his fiancée during a kayaking trip on the Hudson River this past spring, was a victim of homicide caused by a “kayak drain plug intentionally removed by other.”

But the lawyer for the fiancée, Angelika Graswald, said the medical examiner’s office had overstepped its bounds with that determination. He said it was based on police speculation, not an examination of Mr. Viafore’s body.

“Clearly, the Orange County medical examiner failed to conduct any meaningful investigation of her own and relied on false information provided by the New York State Police,” the lawyer, Richard A. Portale, said on Thursday, referring to Jennifer L. Roman, who performed the autopsy for the medical examiner’s office in Orange County, N.Y.

“She ruled this a homicide without a scintilla of medical evidence,” Mr. Portale added.

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