Overview
- Aldon Smith, 36, was found unresponsive last week and his family has hired three lawyers to investigate the circumstances of his death and to gather evidence.
- The Santa Clara County medical examiner has opened a review but has not released an official cause or manner of death and toxicology results remain pending.
- Former 49ers safety Donte Whitner said on The Grit Code Podcast that C.J. Spillman FaceTimed him and showed photos and videos of Smith slumped in a vehicle and later on the ground with emergency equipment.
- Whitner urged Smith’s family and their investigators to speak with C.J. Spillman and Anthony Davis because both appear in the images Whitner described and may have answers about what was recorded.
- Smith’s brain was reportedly donated to Boston University’s CTE center for study, and investigators will need to authenticate circulating images and reconcile witness accounts with formal forensic findings before drawing conclusions.