HUSBAND FINDS WIFE DEAD AT BOTTOM OF STAIRS, GOES ON BEER RUN

Autumn Mercado’s coworker at the Huntsman Cancer Institute tells police she is worried something happened to Autumn. Mercado did not show up for work. The nurse reports that Autumn’s husband has a history of domestic violence and fears it may have escalated.

West Jordan police officers respond to 7800 South and Iron Core Lane for a welfare check.

Autumn’s husband, Carlos Mercado Jr., answers the door, visibly intoxicated, with alcohol on his breath. He appears relieved to see them, claiming he was just about to call. As officers follow him inside, they see a woman’s body covered with a blanket at the foot of the stairs.

Mercado struggles to maintain his balance and slurs his speech. He tells officers he found Autumn about six hours earlier but did not realize she was dead. He says he assumed she was sleeping off the drinks they had the night before. Officers notice several open alcohol containers in the kitchen and living room.

Mercado says he and Autumn drank heavily late into the night, and he fell asleep around 4 a.m. When he wakes at 8:40 a.m., he finds Autumn at the bottom of the stairs but cannot wake her. He tells police he believes she passed out from vertigo and fell. Instead of calling 911, he covers her with a blanket, orders a Lyft, and goes to a gas station for more beer, leaving their 1- and 4-year-old children home alone with their mother’s body.

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Summer Christiansen - Autumn Mercado Sister
• Philip Dubé – Court-Appointed Counsel, Los Angeles County Public Defenders: Criminal & Constitutional Law; Forensics & Mental Health Advocacy
• Dr. Lisa Long – Forensic Psychologist and Owner of Dr. Long and Associates
• Bill Hernandez – California Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Detective
• Dr. Michelle Dupre – Forensic Pathologist and former Medical Examiner, Author: “Homicide Investigation Field Guide” & “Investigating Child Abuse Field Guide;”Retired Police Detective Lexington County Sheriff’s Department
• Sydney Sumner - Crime Online Investigative Reporter

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