San Antonio man dies in 'horrific accident'

by Alexandria Randolph

Llano County officials said Wednesday that there is no reason to think the apparent drowning death of a 20-year-old San Antonio man on Saturday, March 19 was anything but a “horrific accident.”

Llano County Justice of the Peace Pct. 2 Linda Ballard handled the inquest of the death of Edward David Griffin, who had just celebrated his 20th birthday on Feb. 8 and apparently drowned in Lake LBJ at Kingsland last week.

“He jumped off a dock in the backyard of house in Kingsland,” she said. “It was Spring Break. He and some friends were down at the lake for the holiday.

“There is no reason to think this was anything but a horrific accident,” Ballard said, adding that officials did not believe drugs or alcohol were involved. “We thoroughly checked that out.”

Ballard said the young man jumped into the lake of his own accord and didn’t resurface – he couldn’t swim.

“His friends told him to get a life jacket, but he wanted to be like everybody else,” she said.

Upon his disappearance at about 2 p.m., his friends did everything they should have done, Ballard said.

“They called 911 within two minutes,” she said. “They were devastated.”

For the full story, see Friday's Highlander.