What happens when people try to get drunk from products never meant to be consumed? In this episode of Mayhem in the Morgue, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns explains the forensic reality of non-beverage alcohol intoxication, from mouthwash and rubbing alcohol to antifreeze and even hairspray. He shares real cases and describes what these substances do to the body and how medical examiners determine cause and manner of death. What starts as a story about a childhood friend and bottles of Listerine leads into a forensic look at the deadly consequences of ingesting everyday household products.

If you or someone you know needs support for substance use, emotional distress, or thoughts of self-harm, help is available. Call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the U.S.

Highlights

(0:00) Welcome to Mayhem in the Morgue with Dr. Kendall Crowns

(0:15) “Minty Fresh”: the childhood friend who drank Listerine and even tried hairspray

(1:30) Household products people drink when regular alcohol is not available

(2:15) Why Listerine became the focus: easy access, high alcohol content, and deaths tied to mouthwash

(3:15) Alcohol by volume vs. proof: a quick lesson on intoxication math

(4:30) Acute alcohol poisoning: how blood alcohol rises, what overdose looks like, and when it turns fatal

(6:30) Mouthwash case study: a chronic alcohol user drinks multiple bottles of Listerine and is found collapsed at home

(7:30) High anion gap metabolic acidosis: what it is and why it explained the Listerine death

(11:00) Rubbing alcohol: a common toxic ingestion, including the risk of using isopropyl alcohol on children with a fever

(13:00) Antifreeze deaths: alcohol misuse, suicide, homicide, and why ethylene glycol is so dangerous

(15:45) Hairspray as a non-beverage alcohol, the “Ocean” preparation, and Dr. Crowns’ closing message

About the Host:

Dr. Crowns is the Chief Medical Examiner for Travis County, Texas, and a nationallyrecognized forensic pathologist. He has led death investigations in Travis County, Fort Worth, Chicago, and Kansas. Over his career, he has performed thousands of autopsies and testified in court hundreds of times as an expert witness. A frequent contributor to Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, Dr. Crowns brings unparalleled insight into the strange, grisly, and sometimes absurd realities of forensic pathology.

About the Show

Mayhem in the Morgue takes listeners inside the bloody, bizarre, and often unbelievable world of forensic pathology. Hosted by Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns, each episode delivers real-life cases from the morgue, the crime scene, and the courtroom. Expect gallows humor, hard truths, and unforgettable investigations.

Connect and Learn More

Learn more about Dr. Kendall Crowns on Linkedin. Catch him regularly on Crime Stories with Nancy Grace and follow Mayhem in the Morgue where you get your podcasts. If you liked this episode, don’t keep it to yourself—follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a review.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of death of individuals. If you’re sensitive to this topic, this episode may not be for you.

Chicago commutes can be routine until they are not. In this episode of Mayhem in the Morgue, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns recounts his years navigating public transportation and the commuter rules he learned the hard way. Through a civil deposition tied to a crash, he explains positional asphyxia, how a catastrophic spinal cord injury can leave someone unable to reposition, and why body position can become the deciding factor when breathing mechanics fail. Dr. Crowns then shares two transportation stories that still stick with him: a speeding cab ride that turns surreal when the driver recognizes him, and a late-night ride out of O’Hare that goes sideways fast enough to end with Dr. Crowns getting out at a random neighborhood intersection. The episode throughline is simple: trust licensed rides, keep your situational awareness, and do not ignore the early signs that a “normal ride” is turning into something else.

Highlights

• (0:00) Welcome to Mayhem in the Morgue with Dr. Kendall Crowns

• (0:30) The “Barney-Mobile” era: one car, long commutes, and using public transportation

• (1:15) Commuter basics: early trains, conductors, and the “only open seat” rule

• (3:45) Cook County court run and Dr. Crowns’ Chicago taxi education

• (6:15) Lower Wacker hatchet homicide: an autopsy reveals fatal chop wounds

• (9:00) A civil case tied to a roadway hazard and a catastrophic crash

• (10:30) Case breakdown: positional asphyxia after a spinal cord injury and a head-down position

• (12:00) Positional asphyxia: what it is and what investigators look for

• (14:00) Risk groups and common scenarios: children, intoxication, and confined positioning

• (15:30) Taxi ride #1: zigzagging, speeding, and the “how does he know my name?” moment

• (19:00) Forensic pathology board exams and the travel grind

• (22:15) Taxi ride #2: “What have you gotten into?” Locked doors, no meter, dead phone, and worst-case thoughts

• (26:15) Exit plan: cash on the console, out into the snow, and hiding until the car is gone

• (28:00) Closing takeaway: “Take an Uber.”

About the Host: Dr. Kendall Crowns

Dr. Crowns is the Chief Medical Examiner for Travis County, Texas, and a nationally recognized forensic pathologist. He has led death investigations in Travis County, Fort Worth, Chicago, and Kansas. Over his career, he has performed thousands of autopsies and testified in court hundreds of times as an expert witness. A frequent contributor to Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, Dr. Crowns brings unparalleled insight into the strange, grisly, and sometimes absurd realities of forensic pathology.

About the Show

Mayhem in the Morgue takes listeners inside the bloody, bizarre, and often unbelievable world of forensic pathology. Hosted by Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns, each episode delivers real-life cases from the morgue, the crime scene, and the courtroom. Expect gallows humor, hard truths, and unforgettable investigations.

Connect and Learn More

Learn more about Dr. Kendall Crowns on Linkedin. Catch him regularly on Crime Stories with Nancy Grace and follow Mayhem in the Morgue where you get your podcasts. If you liked this episode, don’t keep it to yourself—follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a review.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Content Warning: This episode includes discussion of deaths, including the deaths of children. If you’re sensitive to this topic, this episode may not be for you.

Choking is fast, quiet, and more common than most people think. In this episode of Mayhem in the Morgue, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns explains what happens when the airway is fully obstructed, why panic and oxygen loss escalate in seconds, and how irreversible brain injury can follow within minutes. Through a series of cases, he shows how choking deaths present across age groups: swallowing problems in the elderly, intoxication and unpredictable behaviors in adults, and everyday household hazards in children. From pica-related obstructions to foreign-body ingestion and a devastating battery case with delayed, catastrophic injury, Dr. Crowns ties the forensic details to the real-world patterns that show up again and again in preventable deaths.

Highlights

• (0:00) Welcome to Mayhem in the Morgue with Dr. Kendall Crowns

• (0:30) Grapes of Death: prevalence, risk groups, and who's most at risk

• (1:00) Choking physiology: complete obstruction and the fast countdown to unconsciousness

• (2:00) Heimlich maneuver basics and why it works

• (4:00) Café coronary syndrome: the misread emergency that can cost a life

• (5:15) Case 1: a 22-year-old, trashed room, and injuries that don’t match a fight

• (7:30) Adult risk factors: impaired gag reflex, talking while eating, and certain mental health conditions

• (7:45) Case 2: pica, latex gloves, and fatal choking

• (9:45) Diagnostic criteria and patterns: the obsession, sensory pull, and short-term relief

• (11:15) Case 3: ballpoint pen ingestion, bowel perforation, peritonitis, and sepsis

• (12:30) Pediatric choking: the biggest hazards and why the youngest kids are most vulnerable

• (13:45) How kids’ airways are different: size, shape, larger tongue proportion, and a floppier epiglottis

• (14:00) Case 4: a 5-month-old, a missed item on the floor, and a cherry blocking the airway

• (15:45) Case 5: swallowed battery, delayed symptoms, burns, erosions, and fistulas into major vessels

• (18:15) Closing: prevention, awareness, and why messaging can save lives

About the Host: Dr. Kendall Crowns is the Chief Medical Examiner for Travis County, Texas, and a nationally recognized forensic pathologist. He has led death investigations in Travis County, Fort Worth, Chicago, and Kansas. Over his career, he has performed thousands of autopsies and testified in court hundreds of times as an expert witness. A frequent contributor to Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, Dr. Crowns brings unparalleled insight into the strange, grisly, and sometimes absurd realities of forensic pathology.

About the Show

Mayhem in the Morgue takes listeners inside the bloody, bizarre, and often unbelievable world of forensic pathology. Hosted by Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Kendall Crowns, each episode delivers real-life cases from the morgue, the crime scene, and the courtroom. Expect gallows humor, hard truths, and unforgettable investigations.

Connect and Learn More

Learn more about Dr. Kendall Crowns on Linkedin. Catch him regularly on Crime Stories with Nancy Grace and follow Mayhem in the Morgue where you get your podcasts.

If you liked this episode, don’t keep it to yourself—follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a review.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.