James Lee DiMaggio, who kidnapped a teenage family friend and El Capitan High School student last summer, murdered her mother and brother and fled with her to Idaho had marijuana and a prescription drug in his system when he was fatally shot a week later by federal agents, the examiner who did the autopsy disclosed Wednesday.

DiMaggio, 40, had tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, in his bloodstream at the time of his Aug. 10 death in a remote area northeast of Boise where he had forcibly taken 16-year-old Hannah Anderson of Lakeside, according to Nathan Hess, coroner of Valley County, Idaho. "Whether or not (the chemical) was impeding his judgment, I don't know," he said. "That's something that can be in the system for a while."

Hess declined to disclose the type of legal medication DiMaggio had in his system, though he said it was not a commonly abused or mind-altering substance. Authorities said DiMaggio abducted the El Capitan High School junior on Aug. 3 and killed her mother and 8-year-old brother, whose remains were found in the suspect's fire-gutted mountain home in southeast San Diego County.

A federal hostage-rescue team tracked down the girl and DiMaggio -- whom she had known since early childhood and referred to as "Uncle Jim" -- in Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area on Aug. 10. When he fired a gun while standing near the teen, the agents opened fire, killing him on the spot. The girl only learned about the violent deaths of her family members following her rescue, according to San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore.

The motive for the crimes was unclear, though family friends told reporters DiMaggio seemed to have developed an infatuation with the teenager, a change in their relationship that made her uncomfortable.

-City News Service

