DALTON, Ga. - A mix of prescription pills was found in the hotel room where a Waffle House waitress was found dead last week after spending the evening at a local bar with two men from Columbus, Ohio.
But authorities do not believe either man was involved with or responsible for Jennifer Michelle Cunningham's death, Dalton police spokesman Bruce Frazier said Friday.
"I would like to emphasize that we do not suspect any sort of foul play," Frazier said. "We are waiting for toxicology reports to determine a cause of death."
Whitfield County Coroner Bobbie Dixon said lab results likely would take "weeks" before officials may be able to determine a cause of death.
On Feb. 19, police were called to the Quality Inn on Holiday Inn Drive at 8:15 a.m. for an "unknown medical emergency," according to the police report.
Officers initially thought Cunningham, 26, was from Monteagle, Tenn., but later found out she had moved to Dalton and was working at Waffle House, Frazier said.
The two men were traveling through the area and Cunningham went with them to the Oyster Pub on Feb. 18, Frazier said, and she spent the night in a hotel room with one of them.
Frazier said the two went to bed about 1 a.m. and the man woke up in the morning to find Cunningham dead. He called police, Frazier said.
Investigators found several dozen pills, including Lortab, Xanax and some unidentified pills in the hotel room, Frazier said. He said he did not know if Cunningham had a prescription for the pills.
Frazier said other evidence was collected but has not been sent for testing.
"We are waiting until we get the toxicology report back to see if there is a need [for testing]," he said.