REMEMBERING VERNON LEE JARVIS-CARTER: THE QUESTIONS THAT REMAIN

OKLAHOMA CITY — With the passage of time, some deaths eventually fade from the news headlines, and the world seems to keep moving forward for everyone else. But for the family and friends that are left behind, life never returns back to normal. The grief never leaves and eventually, you just learn how to better carry it.

For Vernon's loved ones, this is one of those stories.

Over the past several weeks, we've spent time speaking with someone who knew Vernon Lee Jarvis-Carter very well. And we know how difficult it is to revisit memories like these, and that's a trust we will never take lightly. We are so grateful to the people who loved Vernon for trusting us with their memories and believing we would tell his story with the care and respect it deserves. And by sharing his story, we hope they know they don't have to carry that grief alone.

Many of the people closest to Vernon believe there are still so many unanswered questions surrounding the circumstances of his death. Although the Medical Examiner's preliminary Report of Investigation classified his manner of death as a suicide, those who knew and loved Vernon continue to live with the question of whether there is more to the story.

And as always, we're not here to tell anyone what to believe or how they should think. We are here to share the publicly available records, tell Vernon's story, and give a voice to the people who continue searching for answers. We'll leave the conclusions up to you.

So, before we talk about the circumstances surrounding Vernon's untimely death, we want to start with the man his family remembers. The son. The father. The friend. The one they love and miss every single day.

Vernon Lee Jarvis-Carter was born on July 10th, 1990, in Guthrie to Diane Jarvis and David Carter. Had he still been here today, he would have celebrated his 36th birthday tomorrow. Instead, tomorrow will be the fifth birthday his children, his family, and his friends have spent remembering him instead of celebrating with him. But Vernon isn’t defined by the way he died, he is remembered by the way he lived and for the person he was.

The mother of Vernon's children, Exavia, told us that Vernon had a love for life and an even bigger love for the people around him. She said he had a kind heart, loved to laugh, and was always trying to make someone else smile. Even during some of the hardest seasons of his own life, she said he rarely let people see him struggle. Instead, he did everything he could to keep a smile on his face and make sure the people around him were okay. She said nothing meant more to Vernon than his family, especially his mother and his children. He was the type of man that never forgot a birthday. Even when he couldn’t be there in person, he would always make sure to call. But when he was home, he made sure every moment counted. She told us about one birthday that has stayed with her ever since. Vernon surprised their daughter at school with candy, flowers, balloons, and a teddy bear. Today, she continues that same tradition with their daughter in Vernon's honor, helping keep a piece of her dad's love alive each and every year.

She remembered Vernon as someone who wasn't afraid of hard work and took pride in earning a living. When he wasn't working, you could usually find him fishing, working on cars, dancing, singing, or making someone laugh. But more than anything, she said Vernon was a protector. He loved the people in his life fiercely and always wanted to make sure they were safe. One memory she still holds near and dear to her heart came when she found an old voicemail Vernon had left years earlier. In it, he was doing funny voice impressions, something she said that perfectly captured who he was. Hearing his voice again for the first time in years brought both laughter and tears. When she played it for their daughter, she had the very same reaction. And for just a few moments in time, it felt like Vernon was with them again.

Exavia told us, "Never in a million years did I think I would be planning his funeral when he walked out that door." She said his death changed their lives forever. It was the day her heart was shattered, and she hasn’t been able to put the pieces back together ever since. Exavia said the grief was so overwhelming that one of their daughters told her she felt like she had lost not only her dad that day, but her mom too. The pain of losing Vernon changed every part of their family's life.

So, that's why we wanted to start by introducing you to Vernon and the man he was, not just the way his story ended. But to fully understand why his loved ones still have so many unanswered questions, we have to go back to the last time they saw him alive.

The last time Exavia saw Vernon was during the very early morning hours (a little past midnight) of Sept. 6th, 2021 at her brother's apartment. According to her, after they had spent some time together, Vernon told her he needed to leave to meet someone to retrieve something that belonged to him. She said he told her the person he was meeting allegedly didn't want to give it back. Exavia then asked if he wanted her to go with him so he wouldn't have to go alone, but Vernon said no. Instead, he told her he would be back the next day so they could pick up their children and drive to Tulsa together. Exavia said the two had recently reconciled and were planning to make their relationship official again. The trip to Tulsa was meant to be a fresh start and an opportunity to gather Vernon's belongings before bringing them back home.

When Vernon didn't show up the next day, Exavia said it was completely out of character for him. At first, she thought something may have come up and that he would call later. Although she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling she had, she tried to convince herself there was a reasonable explanation. Later that same day, she called Vernon's mother, only to learn she hadn't heard from him either.

So, she gave him the benefit of the doubt. But as the days passed, the uneasy feeling never went away. Exavia said she tried everything she could think of to reach him. She called, sent text messages, and even messaged him on Facebook, asking where he was and if he was okay. Every call went unanswered. Every message was left unread. Then came Sept. 12th, their daughter's birthday. Vernon didn't call. He didn't show up. Exavia told us that's when she knew in her heart something was deeply wrong. She said missing his children's birthdays was just not something Vernon did.

Exavia then reached out to his mother and shared her concerns. She told her it wasn't like Vernon to disappear without contacting his children, especially on their daughter's birthday. Shortly afterward, Vernon's mother officially reported him missing. But what happened next left his family heartbroken. Exavia told us that after Vernon's mother filed the missing person's report, they learned Vernon's body had been at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for several weeks before they were ever notified he had been found. According to Exavia, Vernon still had his identification and his mother's phone number in his pocket. Because of that, she said they have always struggled to understand why no one contacted them sooner.

Exavia told us she was informed that, based on the Medical Examiner's preliminary findings, Vernon's death was believed to be a suicide. She also said she was told the case would be considered closed. However, Exavia told us she has never believed Vernon took his own life. Exavia questioned the official findings from the beginning. She told us that after viewing Vernon's body before he was buried and speaking with investigators, she was unfortunately left with more questions than answers. She also recalled that Vernon's mother later received a message from someone claiming to know what had happened to Vernon. According to Exavia, the information was reported to law enforcement, but she believes nothing ever came from it.

So, at this point, we've shared Vernon's story through the eyes of someone who knew and loved him. Now, we think it's important to walk through what the Medical Examiner documented in the preliminary Report of Investigation so you all can see the findings for yourselves as well. Before we continue, we want to let readers know that the next section discusses the Medical Examiner's findings, and reader discretion is advised. More importantly, we ask that everyone remember these records are about a real person who was deeply loved and whose family continues to grieve. Please keep that in mind and be respectful as you read what follows.

According to the Medical Examiner's preliminary Report of Investigation, Vernon was found in Oklahoma City on Sept. 6th, 2021, several hours after he was last seen leaving the apartment around midnight. The report states he was found hanging from a tree in a residential neighborhood. During the initial examination, investigators observed marks on Vernon's neck that they believed were consistent with someone who had died by hanging. Based on those observations, the preliminary report listed the cause of death as hanging and classified the manner of death as suicide. The preliminary report also included toxicology results. According to those findings, Vernon tested negative for alcohol. The report also documented the presence of methamphetamine and a small amount of amphetamine in his system at the time of the examination.

We also want to point out that it's important not to draw conclusions based on the toxicology findings alone. Those results tell us what was documented in the preliminary report, but they don't explain the circumstances surrounding those findings. At this time, we just don't know, and we're not going to speculate.

Once again, we want to make it clear that everything discussed in this section comes from the Medical Examiner's preliminary Report of Investigation. So that being said, these findings should not be interpreted as a summary of the full autopsy.

Based on Exavia's account, after viewing Vernon's body before his burial, she did not believe the markings she observed matched what she expected to see based on the official finding that his death had been ruled a suicide. She said the marks appeared to be lower, closer to Vernon's shoulders. According to Exavia, that observation became one of the reasons she has continued to question the official findings. Exavia also told us that Vernon was approximately 6 feet 7 inches tall and weighed somewhere between 240 and 300 pounds. She said she has struggled to understand how someone of his size could have died in the manner that was described to her. According to Exavia, she was told Vernon was found hanging with his knees on or near the ground, and she said that explanation has never resolved the questions she continues to have.

While the Medical Examiner's preliminary Report of Investigation classified Vernon's death as a suicide, Exavia, along with others who loved Vernon, continue to question that conclusion. And whether their questions are ever answered remains to be seen.

What isn't in question, though, is the impact Vernon had on the people who loved him. To them, he will always be more than the circumstances surrounding his death. He will always be a son, a father, a friend, and a man whose life mattered. For now, all they can do is hold onto the memories and hope that one day they'll finally have the answers they've been searching for.

Sources: This story is based on an interview with Exavia Timmons and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner's Preliminary Report of Investigation, including the toxicology findings documented within that report. At the time of publication, The Untold Chronicle had not been able to obtain Vernon's complete autopsy report. If additional records become available, this story will be updated accordingly.

Photos provided courtesy of Exavia Timmons.