LAPD Apologizes for Premature Release of Notorious B.I.G. Autopsy Report

The Los Angeles Police Department has apologized to the family of the Notorious B.I.G. for releasing the rapper’s autopsy report to the public without warning the family first, the Los Angeles Times reports. 

The L.A. County coroner’s office made the report public on Friday, 15 years after the shooting death of the Notorious B.I.G., who was born Christopher Wallace. Wallace was shot four times in a drive-by on March 9th, 1997, and no arrests were ever made in the case. The LAPD approved the release of the autopsy records on Friday to be used “as an investigative tool, in the hopes that releasing the report would stimulate additional interest or bring forth witnesses or clues in the case.”

The Unsolved Mystery of the Notorious B.I.G.

An attorney for Wallace’s family, Perry Sanders Jr., criticized the police for failing to tell Wallace’s family that the report was about to be made public.

“Due to an administrative error, the autopsy report was released prematurely,” the LAPD said in a statement. “Robbery-Homicide Division detectives had intended to notify Mr. Wallace’s family prior to releasing the report.” 

“Our detectives personally spoke with the Wallace family [Friday] night, and apologized for not notifying them prior to the release” Captain Billy Hayes, head of the division investigating the shooting, told the Times. “Obviously this has been a challenging case for us to solve.  We hope that witnesses or other people with information will come forward and give us the clues we need to solve this case.”