Actress Mary Mara is dead after an apparent drowning on Sunday, June 26. The Law & Order: Special Victims Unit alum was 61.
Mara’s body was discovered by emergency responders in Cape Vincent, New York, on Sunday morning around 8:10 a.m. ET, according to a press release from the New York State Police on Monday, June 27. State troopers, firefighters and an ambulance responded to the call for a reported possible drowning in the St. Lawrence River, which flows into Lake Ontario.
“The victim’s body showed no signs of foul play and was transported to the Jefferson County Medical Examiner’s Office,” the police said in the statement.
The preliminary investigation indicates that Mara died by drowning while swimming in the river, which is on the U.S./Canadian border, but an autopsy is being conducted to officially confirm her cause of death.
Mara’s manager Craig Dorfman confirmed her death. “Mary was one of the finest actresses I ever met,” Dorfman told Us Weekly in a statement on Monday. “I still remember seeing her onstage in 1992 in Mad Forest Off-Broadway. She was electric, funny and a true individual. Everyone loved her. She will be missed.”
Mara, who attended San Francisco State University and Yale School of Drama, was in St. Vincent visiting her sister, Martha Mara. Mary is survived by Martha as well as sister Susan Mara, brother in-law Scott Dailey and nephew Christopher Dailey as well as stepdaughter Katie Mersola.
In addition to her work in theater, the actress, who grew up in Syracuse, not far from St. Vincent, appeared in dozens of hit TV series, including Lost, Law & Order, NYPD Blue, The West Wing and Boston Public. She had memorable recurring roles on series such as Nash Bridges as Insp. Bryn Carson, ER as Loretta Sweet, Ray Donovan as Mrs. Sullivan and Dexter as Valerie Hodges. Her final onscreen role was as Molly in the 2020 heist film Break Even.
