Police initially believed the bear had found Patrice Miller after she passed away when they went into her home in November to check on her welfare.
However, Miller’s murder by the bear was confirmed by a recent autopsy report.
“The coroner’s report confirmed that the bear was ultimately responsible for the woman’s death,” the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said.
The bear was not at Miller’s house when authorities from the Sierra County Sheriff’s Office found her dead on November 8, according to police.
The woman had died prior to the bear’s entrance, according to an earlier preliminary inquiry.
Following the male bear’s capture and euthanasia, DNA tests proved the bear was the culprit.
Miller was killed when the bear bit or swiped her neck, according to Sierra County Sheriff Mike Fisher, who made this announcement to the local media after the autopsy report.
Human-bear attacks are rare, according to state wildlife officials. However, when homes and campgrounds are perceived as simple sources of food, the animals “lose their natural fear of people and their actions get bolder and bolder”.
The news quoted California Department of Fish and Wildlife representative Peter Tira as saying, “This is the most extreme example we have seen in state history.”
