James Wernke
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FULLERTON -- A funeral was held Sunday for James Wernke, the 21-year-old Santa Ana College baseball player whose body was found Tuesday in a flood-swollen creek in Fullerton.
The service began at 10 a.m. at St. Juliana's Church, 1316 N. Acacia Ave in Fullerton. Friends and teammates were encouraged to wear baseball or sports-related attire.
Police suspect Wernke fell into the creek on Saturday while walking his girlfriend's dog.
An autopsy was inconclusive, but police said it appeared he got swept up in the rushing waters.
It'll take a month to six weeks for the results of toxicology tests to determine the exact cause of death, according to a sheriff's spokesman, who says the preliminary results do not indicate anything suspicious about the young man's death.
Wernke's body was found about 10:45 a.m. Tuesday in the debris-choked Brea Creek channel behind St. Jude Hospital Medical Center, about 100 yards south of Bastanchury Road.
Wernke had disappeared on Saturday after taking his girlfriend's dog for a walk in the middle of a powerful storm.
The dog is still missing.
Authorities presume Wernke went into the creek bed during the weekend rain storm when the creek was at full force. Investigators say they may never know exactly what happened to Wernke, but Fullerton police believe the death was accidental.
They believe he either fell into the creek or jumped in to rescue the dog.
"There's no evidence of an assault or any suspicious activity. Based on the location where the body had come to rest, it's consistent with having been in the overflowing creek that was occurring on Saturday, where the creek went from a depth of a foot to about six to eight feet," said Fullerton Police Lt. Alex Bastreri.
"Maybe he was trying to get to the dog or maybe it was the other way around," Bastreri said. "Who knows who got in first, but I could see the dog getting in the water, because it was a yellow lab and they like to go into the water apparently."
"Many people don't perceive it, and you hear these stories of victims getting swept away," Sgt. Andrew Goodrich of the Fullerton police department said.
"I don't know how fast the water moves, but it's strong when it's flooding."
Wernke was only carrying his cell phone, which seemed to have died or been turned off, his mother said.
His last known communication was a text message to his best friend at 1:44 p.m. Wernke said the friend sent him a message back, but James Wernke never responded.
Wernke was a sophomore at Santa Ana College.
According to the school's athletic Web site, he was a nursing major and also pitched for the college's baseball team.
He was drafted out of Fullerton's Troy High School by the Oakland Athletics in the 41st round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft. He signed a letter of intent last month to play for Long Beach State in the 2011 season.
The service began at 10 a.m. at St. Juliana's Church, 1316 N. Acacia Ave in Fullerton. Friends and teammates were encouraged to wear baseball or sports-related attire.
Police suspect Wernke fell into the creek on Saturday while walking his girlfriend's dog.
An autopsy was inconclusive, but police said it appeared he got swept up in the rushing waters.
It'll take a month to six weeks for the results of toxicology tests to determine the exact cause of death, according to a sheriff's spokesman, who says the preliminary results do not indicate anything suspicious about the young man's death.
Wernke's body was found about 10:45 a.m. Tuesday in the debris-choked Brea Creek channel behind St. Jude Hospital Medical Center, about 100 yards south of Bastanchury Road.
Wernke had disappeared on Saturday after taking his girlfriend's dog for a walk in the middle of a powerful storm.
The dog is still missing.
Authorities presume Wernke went into the creek bed during the weekend rain storm when the creek was at full force. Investigators say they may never know exactly what happened to Wernke, but Fullerton police believe the death was accidental.
They believe he either fell into the creek or jumped in to rescue the dog.
"There's no evidence of an assault or any suspicious activity. Based on the location where the body had come to rest, it's consistent with having been in the overflowing creek that was occurring on Saturday, where the creek went from a depth of a foot to about six to eight feet," said Fullerton Police Lt. Alex Bastreri.
"Maybe he was trying to get to the dog or maybe it was the other way around," Bastreri said. "Who knows who got in first, but I could see the dog getting in the water, because it was a yellow lab and they like to go into the water apparently."
"Many people don't perceive it, and you hear these stories of victims getting swept away," Sgt. Andrew Goodrich of the Fullerton police department said.
"I don't know how fast the water moves, but it's strong when it's flooding."
Wernke was only carrying his cell phone, which seemed to have died or been turned off, his mother said.
His last known communication was a text message to his best friend at 1:44 p.m. Wernke said the friend sent him a message back, but James Wernke never responded.
Wernke was a sophomore at Santa Ana College.
According to the school's athletic Web site, he was a nursing major and also pitched for the college's baseball team.
He was drafted out of Fullerton's Troy High School by the Oakland Athletics in the 41st round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft. He signed a letter of intent last month to play for Long Beach State in the 2011 season.
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