November 1, 1990

11/90: Dale Shields, East Lansing, MI

In 1994, an article appeared in Michigan State University's student newspaper, The State News, that briefly mentioned the death of graduate student Dale M. Shields. Shields drowned in the Red Cedar River near the Owen Graduate Hall in November 1990.

According to the article, Shields "had been to a party and had been drinking but was reportedly not intoxicated when he fell into the river. Police suspected no foul play, but Shields' roommate said he had doubts about the "accidental death theory."

I will try to post additional details about this case as they become available.


Source:
Missing Student Found Dead in River, State News 3/17/94, by Jason Gorbett

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I knew Dale Shields when we both worked at Fee Snackshop in 1987-88. I saw him once in a while thereafter, usually outside of Munn Ice Arena when I was trying to get into hockey games.

He was a bit difficult to work with sometimes, but I never had a problem with him. Sometimes he could come across as abrupt or even rude, but nothing more so than that. I went to his memorial service on campus when a colleague informed me of his passing.

Is the title 'footprints at the river's edge' just a snappy title for this entry, or is it indicative of something darker and deeper? In other words, were there footprints found by the Red Cedar at the time of his death? When I read the story in the State News, they said DPS had ruled out foul play. What did Dale's roommate say exactly?

This is a little disconcerting, to say the least. Please elaborate if you're able to.