> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Death on bluff likely the result of altered state - URL: https://www.smdp.com/death-on-bluff-likely-the-result-of-altered-state/ - Published: 2005-04-19T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T06:41:14.000Z - Author: Ryan Hyatt - Tags: Crime, Pacific Palisades, #archive-import *Coroner: Autopsy could take up to six days* PCH — A Santa Monica man who fell from the Palisades Bluff on Sunday was likely not in the right state of mind before the plunge which caused his death. Witness Cheryl Francis Harr-ington said she had just finished exercising when Jesse Capers, 20, exited the condominium building at 201 Ocean Ave. shortly before 8 a.m. He was running barefoot toward the bluffs. Harrington said Capers hopped onto a fence, where he remained briefly before he continued running, falling at least 150 feet. According to Harrington, a young woman, also barefoot, emerged from the building and pursued Capers, yelling his name. As she passed Harrington, she told her ‘he’s going to be OK’ as Capers remained on the fence. When Capers continued past the fence, Harrington said the young woman ran to the bluffs’ edge and began screaming. That’s when Harrington ran for her cell phone to call the police. The Santa Monica police and fire departments responded to Barrington’s call. Eighteen rescuers used an aerial ladder from a parked truck on the Pacific Coast Highway to reach Capers, who was lying face first in the dirt, his leg wrapped around a tree. Breathing and conscious, he reportedly complained of abdominal pain. It appeared Capers had a fractured arm and was suffering from internal bleeding, said SMFD Battalion Chief Carl Bjerke. Capers lost consciousness during the hour-long rescue and died at 9:36 a.m. from severe trauma at the Santa Monica- UCLA Medical Center. Deborah Starr, Capers’ mother, said she returned from a weekend trip when her husband notified her of her son’s death face-to-face on Sunday evening. “I couldn’t believe it,” Starr said. “I was in shock, denial.” Starr said she believes her son’s death wasn’t a suicide — because he had no reason to kill himself — but a freak accident caused by drugs he might have taken before his fall. Starr said her son was spending the weekend at his father’s home in La Jolla, Calif., when Capers and two friends returned to Santa Monica late on Saturday night for a small party held at the high-rise building located just yards from where he fell. Starr said her son was not known to be a regular drug user, but that he and some of his friends had probably taken an unknown substance, possibly psychedelic in nature, between their ride back to Santa Monica and the party. Starr said she talked to those who had been with Capers at the party and he seemed to have reacted negatively to the substance. Capers reportedly had been sleeping in the living room of the condominium when he awoke and caused a disturbance. The host of the party tried to calm Capers down and offered him a glass of milk, which he knocked out of her hands, according to Starr. Capers was escorted out of the condominium and began running into the park and onto the fence. Lt. Fred Corral with the Los Angeles County Department of the Coroner said they were expecting to receive Capers’ body late on Monday from the hospital. The autopsy is expected to take four to six days. A toxicology report — which will indicate what substances might have been in Capers’ body at the time of death — will be available in 10 weeks, Corral said. The police investigation is ongoing. Starr said her son was a bright, happy young man who was taking business courses at Santa Monica College and working part-time at a retail store on Wilshire Boulevard. He attended Franklin Elementary, Lincoln Middle School and Saint Monica Catholic High School before graduating from a high school in northern California. He subsequently returned to Santa Monica, where he lived near 18th Street and Montana Avenue with his mother and stepfather. Capers’ sister, Sarah, attended Santa Monica High School until her sophomore year. She now attends college on the East Coast. No funeral or memorial service has been set, but Starr said she hopes to have services at Brentwood Presbyterian Church, where Capers used to attend. Starr said her son enjoyed playing video games and looked forward to going into business for himself. “He was one of those people that could have done whatever he set his mind to,” Starr said. “He was happy, just getting into the best part of his life. It’s one of those unexplainable tragedies as a parent you never think will happen to you. As a mother, you imagine what your son will become. I will never know.” ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/041905-02_01.jpg) to the Daily Press Santa Monica rescue workers retrieve Jesse Capers, 20, from the Palisades Bluff on Sunday morning. (Photo: John Conkle/Special) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/041905-02_02.jpg) of Deborah Starr Jesse Capers, who is pictured with his little sister, Sarah, and his mother, Deborah Starr, died on Sunday. (Photo: Photo courtesy) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/041905-02_03.jpg) to the Daily Press (Top) Jesse Capers is loaded from a stokes basket to a stretcher before being transported to the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center on Sunday. (Photo: John Conkle/Special) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/041905-02_04.jpg) to the Daily Press (Top) Jesse Capers is loaded from a stokes basket to a stretcher before being transported to the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center on Sunday. (Photo: John Conkle/Special) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 19, 2005.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/041905.pdf?ref=smdp.com)