Family and friends of the Orange County, California, deputy public defender who died at a beachside resort in Mexico while celebrating his one-year wedding anniversary continue to search for answers.
Elliot Blair, 33, of Orange, was found dead after what Mexican media in Rosarito Beach said was an accidental fall from a fourth-floor balcony of the Las Rocas Resort and Spa early on Saturday.
But his family and colleagues reject that description of his death.
In a statement on a GoFundMe campaign for Blair’s family, the fundraisers’ organizer said Blair “was tragically killed” and “the victim of a brutal crime.”
The organizer, Annie Rodriguez, could not be reached. An attorney for Blair’s family did not return a request for comment Sunday. Nor could Mexican authorities in Rosarito be reached for information about what led to Blair’s death.
U.S. authorities were also looking into how Blair died. U.S. Rep. Lou Correa, who represents Santa Ana, California, where Blair worked in the Public Defender’s office, said his office was trying to get more information.
Police in Rosarito told a news website in Mexico, Patrulla 646 Código Rojo, that hotel staff called 911 around 1:15 a.m. after finding Blair’s body, which brought officers and paramedics to the hotel. The Baja California attorney general’s office reportedly was investigating.
The website in Mexico said police claimed to have found evidence that Blair was under the influence of alcohol at the time of his death. But it’s not clear what that evidence was.
Blair was at the resort with his wife, a fellow deputy public defender in Orange County, celebrating their first year of marriage when he died.
The GoFundMe page said Blair was deeply in love with his wife, Kim.
Blair was known for his friendly nature and his intelligence. “Elliot was known for a smile on his face and his clever mind,” it said.
Blair would now be with his father, Tom, who died two years ago, it added.
“Elliot and Tom were thick as thieves,” it said. “They spent countless hours together in the garage working on cars, dirt bikes and dune buggies.”
Funds raised would go toward helping Blair’s wife “with the cumbersome process involved in transporting Elliot’s body from Mexico to the USA and dealing with all the red tape,” the organizer said.
Blair was “a compassionate lawyer who dedicated his life to serving indigent clients,” the GofundMe said. “Elliot was known as a patient and caring advocate. He was the best of us and was loved by countless members of our office and the Orange County legal community. We are heartbroken.”
Kate Corrigan, a former federal prosecutor who is now a partner at Corrigan, Welbourne and Stokke in Newport Beach, knew both Blair and his wife.
She said many in the legal community in Orange County were mourning Blair’s death. He was well respected in both the Public Defender’s office and the Orange County district attorney’s office, whose prosecutors he would have faced off with daily, she said.
“This is beyond tragic and devastating on many levels,” she said.
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(Orange County Register staff writer Mona Darwish contributed to this report.)
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