2010-06-10 / Front Page

Park officials are puzzled over report

BY DAN TUCKER GAZETTE PUBLISHER

Tyler Tompkins' first day on the job for the Yosemite Fund was on Friday, May 28. He reportedly went out for a hike after work and fell to his death between Lower Yosemite Falls and Camp 4 in Yosemite National Park. Tompkins hadn't been seen since he left work that afternoon, according to Park officials. Further details about the accident are under investigation, but Park officials are enraged at how they learned of the incident.

Late Monday afternoon, around 6:30 p.m., Park emergency dispatch received a telephone call reporting the body. What Park officials learned later has them straining to understand the circumstances surrounding that report. According to Scott Gediman, director of media relations for the National Park Service

NPS) in Yosemite, a couple from Berkeley actually came upon

body earlier that morning, around 10:30 a.m., but decided to continue their hike and didn't notify authorities until they returned to their parking lot almost eight hours later. The couple, a 55-year-old male and a 24-year-old female, were not named by Park officials since no charges are pending.

Tompkins, a 24-year old student at California State University, Stanislaus in Turlock, is from Ventura.

Gediman said the corpse had sustained damage from predators, "which of course effects the investigation," due to the length of time before the body was reported.

Park authorities researched any potential charges that could be lodged against the couple regarding their actions, but determined that no charges would be forthcoming. Tompkins’ family members arrived in the Park last Thursday, and the couple that simply walked past the deceased young man has since left the Park.

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The lack of common sense and

The lack of common sense and compassion that the couple from Berkeley showed, is absolutely mind numbing.........I believe that there names should have been printed, some what as a scarlet letter of sorts, so that, if by chance there friends at home read our paper, they would know what horrible people these two are. How does one come upon a body and just continue on there way and enjoy the day?? My thoughts and prayers go out to this young mans family.

I just wanted to say that I

I just wanted to say that I can't believe this couple for their disregard of person. My thoughts and feelings go to this young man's family. What a horrible thing to do! There may have be no crime committed but no sign of respect of the decreased.

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