The cause of death for Joanna Ruth Shields, a 37-year-old hiker found naked in Big Sur, California, has been determined by authorities. The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office announced that Shields died from “probable alcohol withdrawal seizures due to chronic alcohol use disorder.”
Her body was discovered on April 9 on the Pine Ridge Trail, near Sykes Hot Springs. Hikers reported that Shields had a gash on her head and suspicious markings on her neck. However, the sheriff's office has stated that the cause of death rules out homicide. Investigators believe the marks on her neck may have been caused by ants, and have dismissed earlier suggestions of strangulation.