Petition Update: Why Is Shawn’s Phone Still Being Held as Evidence?
I want to share an important development in my continued fight for answers about the death of my son, Shawn Lee Fortune, who died at the Pittsburgh Job Corps Center on February 26, 2025.
For more than a year, I have questioned what happened to Shawn’s cellphone.
Detective Fallert took possession of Shawn’s phone during the investigation. I cooperated and provided the passcode because I believed the phone was being examined as part of determining what happened to my son. I was told that the phone would be returned and that information from it would be provided to me.
That never happened.
For more than a year, I did not have a clear explanation of where Shawn’s phone was, why it had not been returned, or what had been donewith the information on it.
Now I finally have confirmation.
After I filed a complaint, Pittsburgh’s Office of Municipal Investigations/oversight personnel contacted the Homicide Commander regarding my concerns. I was informed that Shawn’s cellphone is still being held in the Pittsburgh Police property/evidence room at Police Headquarters on Western Avenue.
The phone has been identified as:
Property/Evidence No. PR#xx-xx89
(redacted numbers for privacy)
But another part of the response immediately raised a new question.
I was told that the Homicide Commander said providing me with all of the records and data could create an issue “if there were ever charges down the road.” I am not claiming that Pittsburgh Police told me charges are coming. They did not. The statement was conditional.
But after more than a year of trying to understand why my deceased son’s cellphone remains in police evidence, I believe I have every right to ask what that statement means.
If Shawn’s death is considered simply a closed accidental overdose, why is his cellphone still being retained as evidence, and why are potential future charges being discussed as a reason information cannot be released?
I have now formally asked Pittsburgh officials to clarify:
whether Shawn’s death investigation is open, closed, inactive, or otherwise pending;
whether his cellphone remains in evidence because the case is potentially prosecutable
whether the phone underwent a forensic extraction;
whether investigators attempted to determine where the fentanyl came from;
whether anyone was investigated for supplying or providing the substance;
what investigative unit currently has responsibility for Shawn’s case;
and exactly what the Homicide Commander meant by “if there were ever charges down the road.”
There was another important clarification.
Police stated that Detective Fallert attended Shawn’s autopsy and was informed that a preliminary toxicology screening showed fentanyl in Shawn’s system, although the final toxicology results were still pending. I am continuing to review the records concerning that account because I want every statement made now to be compared carefully with thebecause the case is potentially prosecutable;
whether the phone underwent a forensic extraction;
whether investigators attempted to determine where the fentanyl came from;
whether anyone was investigated for supplying or providing the substance;
what investigative unit currently has responsibility for Shawn’s case;
and exactly what the Homicide Commander meant by “if there were ever charges down the road.”
There was another important clarification.
Police stated that Detective Fallert attended Shawn’s autopsy and was informed that a preliminary toxicology screening showed fentanyl in Shawn’s system, although the final toxicology results were still pending. However i didn't see him listed on the narrative summary. Bob Gottschalk, jobcorp director told me to reach out to Detective Fallert to ask questions when my son 1st died. He told me he arrived on the scene and when I did he told me my son "looked perfect", indicating that he saw him on scene. I am continuing to review the records concerning that account because I want every statement made now to be compared carefully with the contemporaneous documentation from 2025.
I recently received another response from Laura Dunhoff, who told me that she forwarded my entire list of questions to the Homicide Commander. He is currently out of the office until Friday, so I am waiting for his answers.
And There Has Been Another Correction
This comes shortly after I discovered something else troubling in Shawn’s official records.
Shawn’s certified death certificate stated that no autopsy was performed, despite the fact that I possess an 11-page autopsy report documenting an autopsy performed on February 26, 2025.
I brought that discrepancy directly to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. After reviewing it, the Medical Examiner’s Office had a supervisor correct the death certificate to reflect that an autopsy was, in fact, performed.
That matters.
It demonstrates why families must be allowed to ask questions, examine records, and demand clarification when official documents don't match.
I am not asking the public to decide who is responsible for Shawn’s death based on incomplete information.
I am asking something much simpler:
Give us the complete truth.
If Shawn’s death investigation is closed, tell me that and explain why his phone remains evidence.
If it remains open, tell me that. If police investigated where the fentanyl originated, tell me what can legally be disclosed about that investigation.
If evidence cannot presently be released because doing so could compromise a potential prosecution, explain that clearly.
But after more than a year, his mother should not have to piece together the status of her son’s death investigation one email, one complaint, and one records request at a time.
Shawn deserves answers.
And I am going to continue asking documented, specific questions until I understand what happened to my son and how his death was investigated.
Please continue sharing Shawn’s petition and saying his name. Justice for Shawn Lee Fortune. 💜
#JusticeForShawnLeeFortune #ShawnLeeFortune #JobCorps #PittsburghJobCorps #JusticeForShawn #Accountability #Transparency
I wish 🙏🏽 my son would have called me!! Black boys don't be afraid to ask for HELP!!