Hey Sandy ... regardless if she was in the hospital I think he would have contacted the consulate well before the 12th of January, even mores so if she was hospitalized after such trauma.
As per Mexico ... yes the border towns are dangerous .... and yes there have been (if I recall 8) Canadians murdered in the last 3 years .... 2 were direct drug distributors known to the RCMP here in Canada , 3 had questionable dealings down there ... regardless it is definately not murder central for Canadian tourists. There seems to be a Mexico murder phobia in the press these days ... there are a lot more dangerous countries to go visit than Mexico ... having visited Mexico a couple of times in the last 3 years ... Mexico City and Puerto Vallarta and traveled around the state of Jalisco I never felt threatened ... just use common sense and stay away from questionable areas and establishments ... wherever I travel abroad or even in Canada I follow those basic rules.