Accidental overdose cause of Anna Nicole Smith's death

[Number 9 Dream]

Hey, guys

I just read on a livejournal community that the cause of Anna Nicole Smith's death has been ruled as an accidental overdose (due to a combination of sleeping pills and therapeutic drugs she was taking at the time). I'll dig up a source later, but for now I've got to get to school.

[sweetdiggity]

DANIA BEACH, Fla. - Former Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith died of an accidental overdose of a sleeping medication and at least eight other prescription drugs, authorities said Monday.


Broward County Medical Examiner Joshua Perper said Smith died of "combined drug intoxication" with the sleeping medication chloral hydrate as the major factor. She had been taking a lengthy list of medications, including methadone for pain and valium, he said.

Chloral hydrate is a sedative used to treat insomnia and alcohol withdrawal, relieve anxiety and ease post-surgery pain. Perper said Smith had been on several antidepressant and antianxiety drugs prior to her death.

"We found nothing to indicate any foul play," said Chief Charlie Tiger of the Seminole police department.

Perper said the detailed autopsy also showed no evidence of disease.

The weeks after her death were filled with public courtroom drama and private whispers about what might have killed her. Officials delayed releasing the autopsy results because of additional evidence, not publicly released.

Perper's initial examination had revealed no serious injuries to her body. Perper said then that prescription drugs, but no illegal drugs, were found in Smith's hotel room, though he wouldn't identify them.

Smith had arrived at the Hard Rock on Feb. 5 and planned to leave four days later aboard a new yacht that her companion Howard K. Stern was arranging to buy. She was seldom seen outside her room during her stay: She was said to be suffering from a stomach flu before she died.

Because her death was so sudden, and because her 20-year-old son Daniel died under suspicious circumstances five months earlier, there has been speculation about possible criminal activity surrounding the deaths. The Seminole Police Department investigated the case because the casino is on tribal land.

An inquest into Daniel's death is scheduled to start Tuesday in the Bahamas, where he died.

Smith grew up in Texas and went from topless dancer to Playboy Playmate of the Year, Guess jeans model and bride of 89-year-old oilman J. Howard Marshall II. She took her fight for Marshall's estimated $500 million fortune as far as the Supreme Court, and the ongoing battle could make her infant daughter, Dannielynn, very wealthy. Stern and two other men have claimed to be the baby's father.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070326/...a_nicole_smith

[Shlomo Yehudim]

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (CNN) -- An accidental drug overdose killed former reality TV star and Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith, Seminole tribal police Chief Charlie Tiger said Monday.

Tiger said there was no evidence of foul play.

"We are convinced, based on extensive review of the evidence, that this case is an accidental overdose with no other criminal element present," Tiger said Monday.

The medical examiner's office had said on March 7 that the cause of Smith's death had been determined, but it would not be announced for one to two weeks to give police time to finish the investigation.

Broward County Medical Examiner Joshua Perper wanted to make sure none of the investigators' findings change any of his own findings, his office said then.

Perper said Monday that Smith was taking nine different kinds of medication in the days before her death, including a sleeping aid.

Tiger said Monday the case was now closed.

Smith, 39, was pronounced dead February 8 after being found unconscious in her hotel room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino near Hollywood, Florida.

A preliminary autopsy in February indicated that Smith did not appear to be a victim of foul play.

Smith was buried March 2 in the Bahamas after a court battle over who would have custody of her body and where she would be buried. She was buried next to her son, Daniel, 20, who died in September of what one pathologist said was a lethal combination of methadone and antidepressants.

Since her death, controversy has swirled over the identity of the father of Smith's infant daughter, Dannielynn. Smith's companion, Howard K. Stern, and two other men have claimed paternity.

In 1994, Smith married 89-year-old Texas oil magnate Howard Marshall II. He died the next year, and until her death, Smith was involved in a legal battle over the inheritance that included a 2006 U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

[Mr. Stefani]

I don't get what took them 6 weeks to confirm what was obvious from the get go

[platinumblondelife]

waiting for all of the "She was just like Marilyn!!!!!!!11" comments lol...

[Ireneparalegal]

Actually, more like Elvis Presley is who I compare her life to.

It takes 4-6 weeks to get the results back from toxicology, that's why it took so long. It is like that with all autopsies when it comes to testing blood for drugs.

It doesn't surprise me. She was addicted to various painkillers and she couldn't admit she had a problem. That is the first thing she needed to do.

[AllIWantIsYourClutch]

I thought the medical examiner said she wasn't on any painkillers. She had methodone in her body, but not in her blood, so that meant she hadn't taken any for a few days.

[Miss McGilacuddy]

Hi, I am brand new here, I registered here a long time ago, but haven't been back since. I am sorry for asking this in the wrong place but I was wondering if there is a thread here where I can "introduce" myself? I have looked for a place like that and can't seem to find one. Thanks.
It is so sad about Anna Nicole, I've always felt so bad for her. I cried when Daniel died. I have a tall, thin, blonde son named Daniel too and he is one month older then Daniel Smith was. It was kind of close to home for me when Anna lost her Daniel.

[Number 9 Dream]

Thanks for the sources, guys I suspected it was an overdose all along, so I'm glad we were confirmed about this information.

[Jo_Luvs_Ketchup]

[80sTrivia]

Originally Posted by Mr. Stefani

I don't get what took them 6 weeks to confirm what was obvious from the get go

I was thinking the same thing... I don't think anyone will be surprised by the findings of the official autopsy...

[Janice]

I'm wondering how Anna got all these medications. Perhaps she was working a few different doctors because no reputable doctor would prescribe all those drugs.

[platinumblondelife]

Originally Posted by Ireneparalegal

Actually, more like Elvis Presley is who I compare her life to.

It just makes me sick when the media compares Anna to Marilyn as if they were so similar just because they were beautiful blonde women who had tragedy in their lives. I dont find it fair that blondes are so often compared to eachother. I could go on and on about how different Anna Nicole Smith is from Marilyn Monroe but I wont lol.

[Mr. Stefani]

Originally Posted by platinumblondelife

It just makes me sick when the media compares Anna to Marilyn as if they were so similar just because they were beautiful blonde women who had tragedy in their lives. I dont find it fair that blondes are so often compared to eachother. I could go on and on about how different Anna Nicole Smith is from Marilyn Monroe but I wont lol.

IMO I can see it. Both were known for their looks, not their talents, or lack of. Both were also known for their relationships/men they slept with. It's not a far stretch.

[Janice]

Originally Posted by platinumblondelife

It just makes me sick when the media compares Anna to Marilyn as if they were so similar just because they were beautiful blonde women who had tragedy in their lives. I dont find it fair that blondes are so often compared to eachother. I could go on and on about how different Anna Nicole Smith is from Marilyn Monroe but I wont lol.

Anna Nicole herself promoted the comparison of herself and Marilyn Monroe, even dressing up as her (below). They were unlike more than they were alike, but there are comparisons that cannot be denied. Beautiful, larger than life, troubled blonde bombshells who died of an overdose. People compared Marilyn to Jayne Mansfield too. I don't see the big deal. Anna didn't have the acting ability of Marilyn, but there are similarities in their tragic lives.