In her own meticulous accounting of the available evidence, Margaret Padilla sees several things that don't sit right. Certified handwriting expert Jane C. Elkin, of Annapolis, whom Padilla hired to compare writing samples, said the suicide note was not in his handwriting.
Margaret Padilla insists that crime scene photos show the guest room in disarray - if ever so slightly - though the rest of the house was immaculate. She says items such as her brother's briefcase, a digital camera and a priceless antique guitar are also missing, and a screen on his back window had been removed.
Luis Padilla never seemed down, according to close friend and co-worker Alicia Morris, of Waldorf.
"I talked to him the day after Christmas, and he was as happy as he'd ever been," Morris said. "He'd reached a point at work and in life where he didn't have anything to prove. He was content."
Perhaps more intriguing, Margaret Padilla also says that a month before her brother's death he had confided to her that he was scared for his life. He didn't elaborate, but police say that on Dec. 6 he purchased a .38-caliber revolver, which was picked up Dec. 29. She believes the gun was purchased for protection, and said he also kept a nightstick in the back seat of his car.
Waltemeyer, the county police captain, said police have reviewed the case multiple times at Margaret Padilla's request and have found that her claims cannot be substantiated.
Officers found no evidence that the gunshot wound was not self-inflicted, and determined that Luis Padilla was going through financial difficulties and had not been taking his medication for seasonal depression - both of which may have played a part in his decision to purchase the gun and take his own life. They did not agree that the home appeared suspicious, and say Margaret Padilla cannot account for items that may or may not have been in his home at the time of his death.
"She's produced multiple claims that we cannot document or substantiate, some of which, quite frankly, aren't even believable," Waltemeyer said. "You have to take a look at the overall facts and scenarios, and determine if any of those claims and allegations are accurate or even make sense and fit the crime scene. ... The only reasonable conclusion that you can come to is that this was a suicide."
