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Former US attorney Jessica Aber died in March due to epilepsy, a medical examiner's office has concluded.
At around 9.18am on Saturday, March 22, Alexandria Police responded to a report of an 'unresponsive woman' being found at a home on Beverley Drive. Cops found the woman was already dead at the scene and identified the body as 43-year-old Aber, the former US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Now, the authorities have released an official cause of death for the federal prosecutor as the State Medical Examiner's Office has concluded Aber suffered 'sudden unexpected death in epilepsy', as per The Virginia-Pilot.
Jennifer Starkey, the medicolegal administrator for the State Medical Examiner’s northern district office in Manassas, told the outlet that Aber's manner of death was 'natural', but refused to provide the full autopsy result due to an exemption for health records under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
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Aber received her law degree in 2006, and shortly after started her career at the Department of Justice in 2009 as an assistant US attorney, where she worked on cases spanning child exploitation to financial fraud, violent crime, and corruption.
After serving as the deputy chief of the criminal division for the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA), she was nominated by former US President Joe Biden as US attorney for the district.
In this role, served more than six million residents across the district and led a staff of around 300 prosecutors, civil litigators and other personnel. Shortly before Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the US in January this year, Aber resigned from the high-profile role.
In her final post on Twitter, Aber announced her resignation, writing: "Serving as U.S. Attorney has been an honor. EDVA is full of dedicated, extraordinary public servants. Thanks to everyone who kept up with EDVA’s fantastic work on X during my tenure."
When news of her passing broke, Aber's family shared in a public statement: "It is with tremendous sorrow that we acknowledge the sudden passing of our beloved Jessica (Jess) Aber, who died in her sleep on Saturday, March 22."
"Jess suffered from epilepsy and epileptic seizures for many years, and on Tuesday, March 25, Alexandria (Virginia) Police said in a statement that they believe her death was the result of natural causes," the family continued.
"We expect more information from the medical examiner in the coming weeks. Our family is in shock and grieving deeply, and we respectfully request privacy as we attempt to navigate through our unspeakable loss.”
Current US Attorney for EDVA Erik S. Siebert also added that the EDVA is 'heartbroken beyond words', describing her as an 'unmatched' leader and 'mentor.'
Siebert added Aber is 'simply irreplaceable as a human being'.
"We remain in awe of how much she accomplished in her all too brief time in this world," he wrote. "Her professionalism, grace and legal acumen set the standard."