POLICE IDENTIFY BODY FOUND IN DITCH

A man whose lifeless body was found in a ditch off South Wright Road in

southwest Santa Rosa has been identified as Richard Colland, 63, police said

Wednesday.

A passer-by found Colland's body shortly after 8 a.m. Tuesday in the ditch

near Concord Avenue, about a mile south of Highway 12 and Sebastopol Road.

An autopsy conducted Wednesday did not reveal any physical trauma, and

police Sgt. Lisa Banayat said the cause of death remained unknown.

Asked if foul play had been ruled out, Banayat wrote in an e-mail, ''We are

not ruling anything out until we get the cause of death from the coroner.''

Colland was nude when his body was discovered, but some clothing was

located nearby, police said.

Banayat said the investigation was continuing.

-- Mary Callahan