Daniel J. Palmer Dies Days After Sister Wanda Palmer Wakes from 2-Year Coma and Names Him As Her Attacker
Daniel J. Palmer III was for a long time thought to be the most important suspect in the violent attack that took place in South Carolina two years ago and left his sister in a coma. But the investigation went into hibernation until a month ago, when she woke up.
After coming out of a coma and being able to say only a word at a time, Wanda Palmer was able to determine that her brother, with whom she had a history of physical conflict, was her assailant. On July 15, Daniel Palmer was taken into custody.
After less than a week, he passed away, most likely putting an end to an extremely rare case in which the investigation was held up due to a lack of evidence.
At this time, there are two unexplained occurrences: the death of a detainee and an assault for which no reason has been made public.
According to a news statement from the state Department of Homeland Security, which is in charge of the Division of Corrections, Daniel Palmer was declared dead on Thursday at a hospital in Charleston, a day after being sent there following an evaluation by jail medical professionals.
The reason of death was not stated in the statement, and a representative for the Department of Health and Human Resources, which manages the state medical examiner’s office, claimed that under state law, the department is only permitted to share autopsy data with kin and police enforcement.
The statement said that Palmer, 55, of Cottageville, was not helpful while in custody and during the booking process at the South Central Regional Jail, where he was taken after being charged with trying to kill his sister and hurting her on purpose.
Two years passed while Wanda Palmer remained unconscious in a nursing home. On June 10, 2020, she was discovered unresponsive and suffering from major head injuries at her residence in Jackson County.
According to the court documents, even though Daniel Palmer had been named as a suspect, authorities were unable to pursue charges against him until his ex-wife came out of her coma. This was because they lacked sufficient proof.
In accordance with a criminal complaint filed in Jackson County Magistrate Court, “because to a history of violence between Wanda Palmer and her brother Daniel Palmer, authorities initially suspected Daniel in the assault.”
During his interview with the investigators, Daniel denied any involvement in the attack and stated that he had not visited to his sister’s house in several days. An eyewitness later reported to detectives that he had seen Daniel standing in the entranceway of Wanda Palmer’s trailer on the evening that she was attacked.
On June 27, more than two years after the attack, a protective services worker called the sheriff’s office to report that the victim had started to say single words and appeared to answer when questioned.
On July 12, law enforcement officers made their way to Genesis Healthcare in New Martinsville to talk to Wanda Palmer. According to the allegations made in the lawsuit, Deputy Julia Bowen “entered Wanda’s room alone and began conversing with her.” “Bowen interrogated Wanda with questions that could have any answer. Wanda mentioned that she had a memory of living in her trailer close to where her mother had her house. She mentioned that she remembered getting harmed at that location. She brought up the subject of her head.
Wanda Palmer claimed that the person who had injured her was her brother, and she named Daniel as the individual in question. “Wanda indicated that he was mean,” according to the complaint, when asked during the interrogation the reason behind the assault “Wanda stated that he was mean.”
Wanda Palmer gave the impression of being in control of her circumstances. Her responses to the questions were well thought out and pertinent. She requested that we pray for her.”
Bond for Daniel Palmer’s detention was set at $500,000. When he was apprehended, he was so hostile that it took hours to convince him to comply with law enforcement for an arraignment, necessitating that a magistrate leave a courthouse and travel to the Jackson County sheriff’s office, according to WCHS-TV.
