Philip Deloria '96, of Albuquerque, N.M., died Saturday night at his home in Grantham, according to a New Hampshire State Police statement released yesterday. Deloria was 21 years old.
According to the release, police were called to the scene around 10 p.m. and Deloria, who was on a leave term from the College, was pronounced dead at New London Hospital about an hour later.
Corporal Michael Carroll, the investigating officer in the case, said the police will announce the cause of death once the medical examiner completes his report.
Trooper Pamela Castoldi said her department does not suspect foul play. "It is not a suspicious death," she said. Castoldi refused to identify the person who discovered Deloria's body or say how the body was discovered.
Senior Associate Dean Dan Nelson said last night that the College could not comment on Deloria's death.
"No one at the College can say anything until we've got an announcement from the medical examiner." Nelson said. "The police, the hospital and everyone are all dependent on that report before they can comment."
Castoldi said she did not know when the examiner would release the report. She said the investigation "could be wrapped up in a couple days and it could be wrapped up in a month," depending on how quickly the coroner makes his report.
Paul Sylvester, the medical examiner for Merrimack County, was unavailable for comment last night. Doug Omera, the doctor on duty at New London Hospital when Deloria was pronounced dead, was also unavailable for comment.
Deloria was a member of Dartmouth's football team and was an active member of Native Americans at Dartmouth, said David Mattingly '96, Deloria's freshman-year roommate.
According to a College press release, Deloria graduated from Albuquerque High School in 1992, where he was co-captain of the team, a member of the All-District First Team and an honorable mention on the All-State team.
Mattingly said Deloria temporarily left school after his freshman fall.
"He left because he wasn't happy here ... I think he just missed home," Mattingly said.
Danielle Fillion '96, who lived across the hall from Deloria, said Deloria was "kind of quiet and he seemed a little homesick freshman year."
"Part of the reason he left was because of his girlfriend, and he was homesick and wasn't finding a place here," she said.
But Mattingly said when Deloria returned to campus a year later "he seemed to be much happier."
"He was really a funny guy at times," Mattingly said.
Deloria is survived by his father and a brother. Both were not available for comment last night.
In a speech last night before participants in the Older and Wiser Program, Dean of Freshmen Peter Goldsmith alluded to a "great tragedy."
According to Goldsmith, he told the group that "when you are 18 or 19 or 20 years old, it is hard to confess to a peer things that aren't going so well in your life."
In an interview later, Goldsmith refused to say whether Deloria killed himself.
Deloria is the third Dartmouth student to die this year. Sarah Devens '96 committed suicide this past summer and Marcus Rice '94 committed suicide in September.
