Famed Los Angeles attorney Johnnie Cochran has been hired by Rashidi Wheeler's family to investigate the circumstances of the Northwestern player's death, The Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday.
"It is time for a full-fledged formal investigation," said Wheeler's mother, Linda Will, in a brief statement after her son's funeral services Monday in Pamona, Calif.
The 22-year-old senior safety died during practice Aug. 3. A Cook County medical examiner said in a preliminary report the cause of death was bronchial asthma, but the investigation remains open.
According to The Tribune, Rev. Jesse Jackson helped arrange the union of the Wheeler family with Cochran and his Chicago partner, Jim Montgomery.
Jackson, who spoke at Wheeler's funeral, is assisting the the family and described hiring Cochran and Montgomery as the first step in the family's formal investigation.
News reports said Wheeler may have taken a supplement called Ultimate Orange, which contains ephedrine, that could be linked in part to his death. Ephedrine is banned by the NCAA.
Northwestern also is investigating whether Wheeler and other football players took the energy-enhancing supplement before he collapsed on an Evanston, Ill., field.
A toxicology report, which will test for ephedrine, will not be completed for several weeks.
The Wheeler family wants the focus of his death to remain on apparent breakdowns in medical care on the field the day he died.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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