Man Found Dead
By John Earp
The following is drawn from the Incident Report obtained from the Jal Police Department:
On November 9, 2025 at approximately 1254 hours, Officer Castenada with the Jal Police Department was dispatched to 804 South 4th St in reference to an unattended death. Upon arrival, Officer Castenada made contact with the reporting party, Nicholas Martinez, a 21-year-old man, along with his grandfather. The reporting party stated that the decedent appeared very ill for about a week and they advised him to go to the doctor and he refused. On Sunday the 9th, Shane was found unresponsive by Martinez, which led to the call for law enforcement. Martinez said that Shane had been living with them, and stated he was not a heavy drinker of alcohol, but was a heavy marijuana smoker. The reporting party’s grandfather stated that Shane had been ill for about a week, possibly with pneumonia due to him not being able to breathe from congestion, and refused medical treatment despite attempts to take him to the hospital.
The decedent was found to have been living in the backyard in a separate structure from the main house, near the alley. He was identified as Shane Goodwin Clinton. Clinton’s body was found by Officer Casteneda to be pale, stiff, and cold to the touch. After examining the residence where the body was found, no signs of foul play were found, and no suicide note was found. Closed bottles of cough syrup, along with some allergy medication, were found near the body. The Office of the Medical Investigator came and processed the scene. The body was then taken by Chapel of Hope Mortuary. Next of kin has been informed of the death.