The death of the Frisco woman charged in her son's death has been ruled a suicide, and her husband's death has been ruled a homicide, a month after the couple were found dead at their home.
A note found at the Dhawans' home is still being analyzed, Frisco police said Wednesday. Police refused to characterize the case as a murder-suicide and said their investigation was ongoing.
Pallavi Dhawan, charged with murder in their son's January death, died from a combination of drowning and toxicity from the common antihistamine diphenhydramine, according to an autopsy report police received Wednesday from the Collin County medical examiner. Her death was ruled a suicide, police said.
Her husband Sumeet Dhawan died from a combination of blunt force head injuries and toxicity from diphenhydramine and salicylate toxicity, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory found in many over-the-counter medications, the report said. His manner of death was ruled a homicide, police said.
Texas Department of Public Safety officials have not released details about the note found at the scene of their deaths, saying they are still analyzing it, and the police investigation is ongoing.
Pallavi Dhawan had been charged in January with the murder of her son with special needs, Arnav Dhawan, after police found his body in a bathtub in the home, surrounded by bags of melting ice.
Pallavi consistently maintained her innocence. The Dhawans said the boy, who had several underlying medical conditions, had died of natural causes, and Pallavi was preserving her son's corpse until Sumeet returned home from a business trip in India. In their culture, the family said, the father must deliver a final blessing.
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The Dhawans' attorney David Finn said Arnav had several underlying medical conditions, including a cyst in his brain and a condition that causes a person to develop an undersized head and that can shorten life expectancy. The medical examiner said the boy's cause of death was undetermined, with natural disease being the most likely factor.
The Frisco Police Department, however, continued to pursue a homicide investigation against the boy's mother.
Sumeet and Pallavi Dhawan were both found dead at their Frisco home in the 15000 block of Mountain View Lane last month, he in the house and she in the backyard, authorities said.
