Cops: No foul play in mom’s fatal fall

Tamla Horsford’s death ruled accidental after state, local inquiry.

A mother of five died from her injuries when she fell from the deck of a home where she was attending a party, the Forsyth County Sheriff ’s Office said Wednesday. Tamla Horsford’s death has been ruled accidental, Maj. Joe Perkins said.

Horsford, 40, of Cumming was discovered deceased on the morning of Nov. 4 in the backyard of a home where she had attended an overnight party, Perkins said during a news conference.

“Detectives from the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Crime Scene Investigation Unit and an investigator from the Forsyth County Coroner’s Office responded to the scene,” he said. After an on-site investigation, her remains were transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy, he said.

The final report, completed Feb. 6, ruled the death “accidental and consistent with a fall,” Perry said. Authorities think Horsford, who had a broken wrist and head and torso trauma, fell off the deck. Blood testing determined she was highly intoxicated, authori- ties found. Though all other party guests were interviewed, no one saw Horsford fall.

Conversations surrounding Horsford’s death have spread on social media in recent days as family members and friends questioned the official findings.

“It’s impossible to get the injuries that she had from one fall,” family friend Michelle Grave told Channel 2 Action News. The family hired its own medical examiner who found extensive injuries all over Horsford’s body, Graves said.

Perkins did not comment on internet speculation during the Wednesday news conference but detailed the investigation’s steps and findings.