underneath. Traficant was taken to Salem Regional Medical Center in Salem, Ohio, then airlifted to St. Elizabeth's Health Center in Youngstown. On the evening of September 24, his wife described him as "sedated and not doing well." By September 26, via news reports and statements from attorney and family spokesman Heidi Hanni, it was learned that the family was awaiting the doctors' assessment; there was no word as to whether or not Traficant had suffered a heart attack, but he was still unconscious and was being sedated for pain and other reasons. A number of longtime family friends, including Linda Kovachik, a former congressional aide to Traficant, told The Vindicator that it is believed Traficant had a heart attack, causing the tractor accident. A text message was sent out Friday evening September 26 by Jim Condit Jr., the Constitution Party candidate for Ohio's 8th congressional district and a close friend who had been traveling with Traficant to help promote Project Freedom USA. The text message stated that "the machines were disconnected at 2:00 p.m. (Friday). He is still breathing. Thousands are praying." On September 27, 2014, Traficant died at a hospice in Poland, Ohio, aged 73. By September 29, Traficant's body had been buried in an undisclosed location after the family had a private funeral, and announced that there would be no public funeral for him. A subsequent medical investigation determined that Traficant had not had a heart attack or seizure before the accident, and was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In addition, he had not sustained any crushing injuries in the accident. The forensic pathologist who conducted the examination attributed Traficant's death to positional asphyxiation, stating that he had been unable to breathe because of the weight of the tractor on top of him. Publications Target: Traficant, The Untold Story, Michael Collins Piper, American Free Press; (2005); See also List of United States Representatives from Ohio List of United States Representatives expelled, censured, or reprimanded List of American federal politicians convicted of crimes List of federal political scandals in the United States References External links "Look at what Traficant swept under the rug" – CNN, August 1, 2002 Traficant quarterbacking Pitt over Navy Official Website by Nicky Nelson & Jim Condit Jr., Project Freedom USA James Traficant - A Tribute (Video) by Mike Wayne Category:1941 births Category:2014 deaths Category:20th-century American politicians Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers Category:21st-century American politicians Category:21st-century American male writers Category:Accidental deaths in Ohio Category:Activists from Ohio Category:American anti–illegal immigration activists Category:American football quarterbacks Category:American people convicted of tax crimes Category:American people of Italian descent Category:American people of Slovak descent Category:American political writers Category:American talk radio hosts Category:Deaths from asphyxiation Category:Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives Category:Expelled members of the United States House of Representatives Category:Farming accident deaths Category:Members of the United States Congress stripped of committee assignment Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Category:Monetary reformers Category:Ohio Democrats Category:Ohio Independents Category:Ohio politicians convicted of crimes Category:Ohio sheriffs Category:Paleoconservatism Category:Pittsburgh Panthers football players Category:Politicians convicted of bribery under 18 U.S.C. § 201 Category:Politicians convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States Category:Politicians convicted of illegal gratuities under 18 U.S.C. § 201 Category:Politicians from Youngstown, Ohio Category:Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Category:Candidates in the 1988 United States presidential election Category:University of Pittsburgh alumni Category:Writers from Ohio Category:Youngstown State University alumni Category:American male non-fiction writers