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Orchard worker finds dead man Police try to learn where he'd been By DANI DODGE PHOENIX -- Jackson County sheriff's deputies are searching for clues in the death of a man found Wednesday with a gash in his head in an orchard off Coleman Creek Road. Although deputies Wednesday night knew the identity of the man, they declined to release the name pending notification of the 39-year-old victim's family, said Lt. Dewey Patten. The family is local. The body was discovered about 1 p.m. Wednesday in an orchard just west of Phoenix. "An employee from the (Crystal Springs) Orchard had pulled in on a tractor and was doing something when he saw the man's body," Patten said. Deputies responded immediately to the scene, and after an initial investigation activated the Major Assault and Death Investigation Unit. Officers from Ashland, Medford, Oregon State Police and the Oregon State Police crime lab responded to the orchard to assist deputies. The body was located about 300 feet from the road. The man had a wound on his head and had bled profusely before he died. It did not appear anyone had tried to hide the body. No weapon was found at the scene. "We don't know if it happened there, or somewhere else and someone brought him there," Patten said. Deputies Wednesday had not identified any suspects. The cause of death had not been determined Wednesday, but an autopsy was scheduled for today. Orchard workers had last been in that particular field Saturday. Investigators Wednesday were trying to reconstruct the victim's whereabouts. Several people reported they had seen or talked to the victim on the phone Sunday, which was Halloween. Patten said he did not know if the victims' Halloween plans had included parties, or going out at all. The victim was unemployed and had been drifting between several homes before his death. He was divorced and hadn't been reported as missing to police. Deputies were searching Wednesday for the victim's yellow Z28-style Camaro. It was not at the orchard or his last known residence. Deputies declined to say where the victim's last known residence was located. Deputies did locate the victim's brother and notified him about the death Wednesday. The brother was contacting a minister Wednesday night before going to talk to the victim's parents and son, Patten said. Deputies expected to release the name of the victim today. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA